Secret Admirer
by blurryillusions
Summary: Roxas has been receiving love letters lately, pair that with the feeling of being watched. Now, he's feeling a bit panicked. AU. Dark/One-Sided Akuroku
1. Chapter 1: Day 1

**Warnings: Dark/one-sided Akuroku, stalking, disturbing content, etc. (IDK for now)**

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**Secret Admirer**

**Chapter 1**

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The letters started coming quite rapidly after Valentine's Day, the holiday where love starts filling up the air. It was cute at first, with the loving compliments and the scribbled hearts but it soon escalated. His "secret admirer" would send flowers and they were beautiful, absolutely gorgeous with their bright colors. Though, they weren't as lively the next day... or the day after that. By the end of the month, the radiant flowers he would receive weren't even alive anymore. They were dead, burnt-looking and just crispy, crumbling into ashes whenever you touched them.

Along with the flowers, he would receive some odd presents. The ones that had him arching his eyebrow in confusion because it made _absolutely _no sense. It was as if his secret admirer wanted him to run home crying to his mother. Though, he wasn't bothered by it at first until they kept coming. It made him slightly nervous, as the strange gifts started to develop into something more malicious and cruel.

He also had this weird feeling that he was being watched. Every time he went to his little job, a fast-food restaurant, it was as if there was someone keeping an eye on him. Whenever he walked home, he would turn back with anxiety from the piercing gaze on him. He tried to convince himself that it was only from the uneasiness he felt from those wretched love letters but that never seemed to do the trick.

Needless to say, Roxas was officially creeped out. For the next six months, it was like a never-ending nightmare. He never expected for things to transition from a simple cute love letter to a story filled full of terror.

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**February 14- Day 1 (Valentine's Day)**

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It was an ordinary day, except for the fact that people were cuddling in his little workplace a _whole _lot more now. Valentine's Day was definitely _not _the day for him, especially with the groping and the tongue wars he has been seeing lately. There were even people handing out their bouquets of roses or expensive chocolates in this smelly fast-food restaurant. Honestly, couldn't people afford a real restaurant for their dates? You know, with something more romantic than flies buzzing around their heads. Unless they're into eating juicy hamburgers and greasy french fries. Whatever, it's his life he should be judging.

Roxas sighed, shuffling his hand through his oily blond hair, only to pull back with revulsion at the gross feeling of his hair. He should've definitely taken a shower this morning. He immediately straightened up when a customer entered the shop, walking straight to the cashier to order.

"Hello ma'am, how may I help you today?" He placed on a polite smile, his usual low voice pitching up slightly to sound friendly and sweet. The lady smiled back at him, placing an order of cheeseburger and fries. He quickly jotted the order down on the cashier, before raising his eyes to the lady. "We'll be right out with your order."

His shift was about to end which made him sigh in relief, exhausted with the long aching day. However, he couldn't rest just yet. He made a promise with his cousin that he was going to hang out with him after he was through with his job. They were heading out to eat at this restaurant in downtown, where Italian food was going to be served. The thought of it made his mouth water, eager to start eating such a delicious meal.

Being surrounded by burgers and fries each day only made him appreciate his cousin's attempts to take him out for dinner. It was torture working here because he was never able to eat or afford luxurious meals. Also, he wasn't earning a high salary working in this dumpy fast-food restaurant. Roxas would feel an ounce of regret, understanding that he made the decision to skip college, which resulted in a shitty job and a run-down apartment complex.

It wasn't long before his cousin stride in with his dreadful, flashy clothes. Roxas raised an eyebrow, unimpressed when his cousin sent a wide grin and a teasing wink his way. His cousin soon strolled over towards him, slamming his hands down on the counter, an enthusiastic smile curving upwards.

"Roxas, are you ready for the best night of your life?" Roxas sighed, tiredly staring at his beaming cousin, who yelled out the words in excitement.

"Sora, you've got to stop screaming everytime you walk in here. You're going to get me fired one day." Sora laughed, shaking his head.

"There's no way that's going to happen. Your boss likes me too much to fire you!" Sora exclaimed, before flickering a flirtatious wink behind the blond. Roxas groaned, realizing that his boss was now standing behind him. An amused laugh rang in the air, as a hand clamped down on his shoulder. He turned his head slightly to meet shining brown eyes. His boss was just a kind young woman who was quite fond of Sora, his loud-mouthed cousin.

"It's fine, Roxas! Just go have fun!" His boss declared, smiling gently at Sora, who had a 'smug' expression on his face. "It's Valentine's Day! Go lighten up and enjoy your time with Sora."

Roxas sent a strained smile at his boss, nodding slightly before slipping his apron off, along with his hat. He placed it in the rack, where he usually placed his uniform at. As soon as he walked around the counter, Sora had placed his arm around his shoulders, studying the kissing couples in the booths. Roxas only regarded them with a disgusted glance. They exited the fast-food restaurant, cold air immediately blasting their faces. Roxas took a deep breath of fresh air, glad to leave the stuffy environment.

"Man, did you see the amount of people smooching in there? How can you stand seeing that all day? Holy shoot, I hope we don't see any of that tonight." Sora had scrunched his face in repulsion, a disgusted sound escaping out of him. Roxas shivered, the frozen weather chilling his bones.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah.. I'm freezing my butt out here, Sora. Where the hell did you park your car?" Roxas gritted out, his teeth chattering. Sora glanced at him, taking note of the simple short-sleeved shirt and cargo pants Roxas was wearing. Roxas was never the one to dress appropriately for the weather, especially with his lifestyle.

"It's nearby, just next to that red car over there." Sora pointed towards his own car. Roxas quickly ran ahead, pulling the handle only to find it locked. Roxas glared at Sora, who grinned sheepishly and with a press of a button, the doors unlocked with a beep. Roxas stuffed himself in, rubbing his arms as an attempt to warm himself. Sora entered after him shortly, starting the car, inserting his key into the ignition. "You know, it's going to take some time before the car warms up.."

"I know, let's just drive to the restaurant already. I'm craving some Italian food." Sora blinked, flickering his shocked eyes to Roxas, who frowned in confusion.

"Wait what? You want to head to one of the most expensive restaurants in town dressed _like _that?" Sora cried out, throwing his hands up in exasperation. Roxas glanced down at his own clothes, frowning at the ketchup-stained shirt, before placing on a weak grin. Oh yeah, he was still dressed in the foul uniform he was required to wear. He really never bothered to buy a new, clean shirt nor did he ever worried about the stains on his uniform, mostly because an apron usually covered his whole body.

"Well, we wouldn't want to be late to the reservations you placed.." Roxas muttered, wincing slightly at the hysterical laugh that escaped the brunet. Sora scrutinized each and every detail on Roxas with disbelief.

"Well then, I guess it was a good idea to pick you up two hours earlier than the time I booked." Sora croaked out, before focusing on exiting the parking lot. "Let's just go to your complex to clean you up."

"But isn't the restaurant an hour away from my place?" Roxas complained, narrowing his eyes until Sora interrupted with a repulsed groan. Keeping a hand on the wheel, he pointed harshly at Roxas with a horrified expression, mouth clenched tight in a moan.

"Roxas, you look like one of those homeless people in the streets! Your clothes are covered in gross substances and your hair isn't even in the usual messy style you like it to be in! It's a freaking bird's nest with it's tangles and it's _so _greasy! Your face is oily too! Oh gross, you're seriously going to break into pimples.. Plus, that smell!" Sora sniffed the air, gagging in horror. "Oh god, when was the last time you took a shower? You smell putrid!" Roxas frowned, deeply offended, before pushing his nose into his stained shirt, taking a huge whiff. He choked, pulling his nose away from his smelly shirt.

"I don't smell that bad!" Roxas gasped out, rolling down the windows. He stuck his head out, breathing in the cold clean air. He quickly glanced back at Sora, who raised an eyebrow.

"_Sure_, of course you don't." Sarcasm was clear in his voice. Roxas snorted, leaning back as he rolled the windows back up.

"Then, I guess you should've invited Riku or Kairi instead of my stinky self." Roxas stated, watching as Sora speeded down the streets, a frenzied expression on his face.

Sora laughed loudly. "No way, you seriously don't know how conceited Riku becomes on Valentine's Day! Just 'cause all the girls give him about ten to twenty love letters each year doesn't mean he can shove them in my face, bragging with that cocky smirk of his."

Roxas glanced at Sora, face devoid of any expression, before dully saying. "But.. don't you receive the same amount of cards as Riku each year?"

"Pftt, I usually only receive about five less letters than him on Valentine's Day but it doesn't do anything at all! He _still_ loves to brag about how all the ladies want him.." Roxas sighed tiredly, rubbing his temples in aggravation. Ah yes, Sora was definitely a well-known charmer... So, it must've strained his ego when he saw Riku gain more love letters than him.

"Then, how 'bout Kairi?" Roxas suggested, scratching his greasy hair in thought.

"Meh, she's on a date with her girlfriends tonight..." Sora mumbled, before glancing at him with a big smile. "Besides, I wanted to spend time with you, not them..

Roxas sighed, rubbing his eyes tiredly. He felt exhausted and fatigued, his muscles aching from the long day at work. All he wanted to do was go home, eat and take a long, relaxing nap but he promised Sora to spend the night with him and his fancy Italian restaurant. Roxas felt his stomach growl in hunger, the taste buds on his tongue craving for a delicious, warm meal.

It wasn't long before they pulled up in front of his apartment complex twenty minutes later. Sora quickly grabbed his keys from the ignition, before rushing out of the car. Roxas slowly moved out, shivering when his warm body contacted with the cold once again. Sora gripped his arm with a frantic look, hastily tugging him through the parking lot and up a couple flights of stairs. Soon, they were in front of Roxas's door, gasping for breath in the freezing weather.

"Come on, open the door!" Sora blurted out. Roxas shot him a look, before taking out his keys from his pocket. Sora was tapping his foot, anxiously waiting. Shortly after grabbing his keys, Roxas had the door swung open widely. Immediately, Sora dragged him inside into his tiny apartment. The moment Sora walked inside, his face slowly started to freeze, his eyes widening, appalled. His nose scrunched up in repulsion, the horrified expression from when he described Roxas's appearance was back on his face.

His place was a horrible mess. Dirty dishes were still piled in the sink, paperwork and clothes was scattered all over the floor while decaying food was lying around the place. The smell was just as revolting as the stench of crap. Bugs such as cockroaches, spiders and ants were everywhere, dead, legs pointing upwards. It was a pig's den...

"Uhh, Roxas?" Sora asked, an eyebrow raising, giving a small shudder of disgust at the cockroach crawling around in an abandoned bowl of chips.

"What?" Roxas mumbled, trudging to his bedroom, avoiding the papers that were on the floor.

"Did someone break into your place or something? Your apartment looks as terrifying as your-umm-fashion style." Sora bluntly interjected, glancing around the untidy residence. "Don't you know how to clean?"

"Oh shut it, Sora. I just don't have the time to clean. I'm too busy with work to do anything around here." Roxas muttered. "And besides, I want to relax on the days I'm off my crummy job." Roxas entered his room, walking straight to his closet, searching for any decent clothes to wear. Sora also followed him into his room, staring into the closet. Roxas was about to grab one of his favorite outfits when Sora yelled into his ear.

"I think you should wear that!" Sora pointed at an awfully bright orange shirt. Roxas sent him a strange glance, nose wrinkling with distaste. Sora smiled sheepishly at the baffled look. "Well, it looks like the cleanest shirt in this closet."

"Sora, look.." Roxas spitted out, irritation building up. "Just 'cause I'm a slob doesn't mean I don't have a good taste in style." Sora raised an eyebrow, about to reply when Roxas interrupted. "I'm not about to start wearing the same morbid clothes as you. I think you should be the one changing as well into something more...decent."

Sora raised his hands defensively, insulted. "Hey, my clothes are fantastic the way they are!" Roxas scoffed, digging through his clothes once again. "Fine, I guess I won't ever give out any of my lovely advice to you ever again."

In his opinion, Sora never handed out the greatest suggestions.

Roxas finally decided to grab an outfit, the colors neutral and the clothes clean, nothing like Sora's flashy style. Sora whistled appreciatively, eyeballing the clothes in Roxas's hands, whispering the words "nice choice." Roxas, satisfied with his pick, promptly proceeded to shove the brunet out of his room, pushing hard at Sora's back. Sora let out some sort of whine, scrunching his face up when he was crammed into the revolting living room.

"Stay out here while I take a quick shower." Roxas demanded, before walking straight to his bathroom that was placed down the hall.

"Wait! What am I suppose to do out here?" Sora shouted out. Roxas glanced back to find his cousin waving his arms frantically, an exaggerated expression on his face. He flickered his eyes around his living room, thinking.

"Well," Roxas muttered. "Why don't you sit down on the couch and sit there patiently while I take a shower?" Sora examined the filthy leather couch, splattered with papers, food and crawling bugs.

"Ugh, you want me to sit on _that_?" Sora gagged, hands wrapping around his stomach as he pretended to throw up. Roxas rolled his eyes, unimpressed by the display of bad acting.

"Yes," Roxas replied. "I want you to sit down on the couch and shut your mouth while you're at it. I need to go to take a shower." It wasn't soon before Sora obtained this frantic glint in his eyes, glancing down at his watch.

"Oh gosh! What are you waiting for?! You only got twenty minutes to shower! Hurry up!" Sora said, urgently shooing him away.

Roxas walked straight to his bathroom, shutting it loudly, before locking it. He placed the disheveled clothes on his dusty counter, walking to the shower, twisting the knob to the right for the warm water. After water started bursting out of the faucet, he stumbled back next to the counter, staring at himself more closely at the dirty mirror.

Roxas was never the one to obsessively gaze at himself in the mirror and he was glad he never did. Sora was right on point about his appearance, everything about him screamed unhygienic and icky. Compared to Sora's clean self, Roxas was a complete slob in everything he did. His hair wasn't even the way he _liked _it! There was once a time where he always combed his hair into that messy, unkempt style he just adored. It was _perfect _and it felt so _right_! But now, it was just a tousled mop of knotted, blond hair. Roxas _hated _it, especially the way it gleamed with grease, bright blond hair now muddy with dirt.

Everything about him was shitty; his life, his apartment, his crappy job and his gross appearance. It all went down-hill after high school, when Roxas decided to ditch college because it just wasn't worth the time or money. He couldn't even make the right decisions for himself! Now, all he had was a job that paid a low wage. Roxas sighed bitterly, before lifting his stinky shirt off his chest, along with his other pieces of clothing.

Roxas stepped into his shower, groaning when the warm water pelted his body. It was relaxing, as the heat warmed his slightly chilly body. Roxas grabbed his shampoo, squirting it out into his hand, before rubbing furiously at his scalp. Along with his hair, he scrubbed his body down, determined to make it squeaky clean. It had been nice, showering in the warm water for at least five minutes, until the water suddenly went cold, making him step back with a shudder. Groaning, he quickly finished up, mumbling about how bad his living conditions were.

Roxas grabbed his towel, leaving the shower, shivering when his wet body met the cold air. He rubbed himself dry, firmly dragging his towel all over his body until he felt clean. Then, he placed his clothes on, smoothing out the wrinkles with his hands slowly. After that, he glanced at the foggy mirror, wiping his hand over the mirror to find a better view on himself. However, the fogginess kept returning so he opened the door slightly, allowing for the humid air to escape the stuffy bathroom.

He cleaned the mirror once again, frowning at the wet hair before grabbing his towel and scrubbing his hair wildly. After a few minutes, he released the towel from his head, discovering his hair was now a fluffy, dry mess. But it didn't mattered, because there was definitely a time where all Roxas did was style his hair after it was a messy state such as this. Roxas scavenged his drawers, before finding an unused, old hair gel. Then, after applying some gel and combing through his hair... Voila! It was the same, nice style he loved back in high school. Good old memories...

Roxas walked out and for once in a decade, he was dressed in the nicest clothes he ever worn. However, Sora wasn't on the bug-infested couch like he was supposed to. Roxas found Sora standing near his dining table, rummaging through the pile of mail he grabbed in the morning.

"Sora, why the hell are you going through my stuff?" Roxas shouted, stomping over to his cousin. Sora flinched, flickering his eyes to the blond.

"I foun-" Sora stilled, eyes widening with bewilderment, as he examined Roxas from the top of his head to the bottom. "Wow, you sure know how to clean yourself up. You look exactly the same from our high school days.." Sora gasped, amazed. Roxas gave a proud smirk as he took in the fascinated look adorned on the brunet's face.

"Yeah, I know." Roxas's smile soon died down to a frown. "Sora, why were you going through my mail?" Sora blinked, before a huge grin curved upwards, a few mischievous laughs escaping him. He shoved his hand under the stack of mail, until he gripped one of the letters. Then, he pulled his hand out of the pile and started waving a pink, frilly letter teasingly in front of him. Roxas just stared at Sora, puzzlement etched all over his face.

"I was just trying clean this place a little and look at what I found! It's a love letter! Why didn't you tell me someone sent you a Valentine's letter!?" Roxas only blinked, confusion clear in his cerulean orbs. What, a love letter?

"Huh?" Roxas uttered, scratching his stiff blond hair. "I don't remember having_ that_ when I grabbed my mail this morning..." Sora frowned disappointedly, before shrugging.

"I guess you must've missed it then."

Roxas reached for the pink letter, curious to learn who sent the mail. However, Sora pulled it away from him, hiding it behind his back, wagging his finger with his other hand. Roxas's hand was still suspended in midair, before it was slowly dropped back besides him. Roxas frowned irritably, eyebrows furrowed, sending an exasperated look at the brunet. Sora had broken into another huge grin, eyes glinting with amusement and joy.

"Let's open it at the restaurant after we finish our meals since I brought all of my love letters too! We can open yours last, Roxas!" Sora plunged the pink letter inside his coats jacket, crumpling it a little. "By the way, all my lovely letters are in the car!" Roxas frowned, sending a slight suspicious glare towards Sora.

"Sora." He started. "Did you bring those letters just to brag?" Sora only replied with a sheepish grin, a nervous chuckle escaping his throat, as he rubbed the back of his head slowly. Roxas just groaned loudly, gripping his head in annoyance. Of course he would bring his letters, he always loved showing off.

"Hey! That's not the reason why!" Sora tried to reason, anxious smile still placed on his face. "The only reason I brought them was to show you how funny the content is! It's hilarious and flattering! We can laugh at my letters together!" Roxas only glared at his cousin, who nervously laughed.

"Whatever.. Let's just leave." Roxas muttered, shaking his head, a flat expression on his face. The blond trudged to his room, trying to find the comfiest coat in his closet. Once he placed his warm coat on, he left the room, only to find Sora still standing there. "Well, why aren't you in the car? You should've tried to warm the car up while I was busy." Sora flashed an embarrassed smile, before zipping out of his messy apartment, racing down the stairs. Roxas sighed tiredly, rubbing his exhausted eyes, before slowly trudging to grip his keys he placed on the counter. Then, he was out the place, shuddering from the cold. Roxas soon entered Sora's car with a loud yawn.

"You ready?" Sora exclaimed, excitement was found in his voice as he placed his car into drive. Roxas only clicked his seatbelt on, before leaning back into the chair, relaxing as his eyes fluttered closed.

"You know what?" Roxas mumbled slowly, the effects of fatigue finally catching up to him after a long day at work. "I think we should've crashed at your place for the night. Then, we could've ordered a bazillion pizzas..."

"But a nice dinner on Valentine's Day sounds better than some sleepover we can arrange at any time." Sora argued, as his car left the awful apartment complex. Roxas nodded sluggishly.

"I guess you're right.."

His words were slurred together, heavily laced with exhaustion. Roxas leaned his head against the cool window, finding the rocking of the car to be strangely relaxing. After a while, the car heated up, making Roxas curl up in satisfaction. Soon, he dozed off, listening to the radio Sora had turned on during the pleasant silence. The slow, indie music was whispering into his ear sweetly as he drifted off to dreamland, darkness surrounding the streets as they drove down the never-ending path.

Roxas was in a lovely state of unconsciousness for the next hour, small snores escaping him as the car jumped around.

* * *

"Roxas, wake up! We're at the restaurant!" Sora's whispers sounded harsh against his eardrums, making him groan. He was waking up quite nicely until someone decided to shake him awake, rocking him back in forth. "Roxas, we're here! Wake up!" The blond grumpily slapped the hand away, grunting, as his eyes flickered open in annoyance.

"I heard you the first time. No need to repeat.." Roxas grumbled, stretching his arms out. Sora clutched his keys before slipping out into the icy, frozen night. The blond was smoothing out the hair he had slept against. Deeming it fine, he left the car, walking besides Sora into the elegant restaurant. When they first entered the place, Roxas gaped with amazement, goggling the place down.

It was _clean.._

_Cleaner _than any place he ever been to.

They were soon able to pass the busy line, guided by the waiter to their table. Roxas was flickering his eyes all over the place, mouth wide open, staring down the entire place. Sora only placed on a all-knowing smirk, as if he knew this would bedazzle the blond in such a way. Opening their menus only made Roxas popped his eyes out even more. It was clear he had no idea what those Italian words meant scribbled all over his menu. The food that was shown on the menu only made his stomach growl, mouth drooling in hunger.

"So, do you know what you want to order?" Sora questioned, closing his menu after he decided his meal for the night.

"I don't know..." Roxas mumbled, feeling conflicted on what to choose. Sora sighed, before taking the menu from Roxas's hands. Then, he showed all the best food options Roxas should pick from, pointing to his favorite. Roxas agreed with the second option he was presented with, his stomach growling even louder. Later, the waiter passed by, jotting down their orders before trudging away.

Their dinner was later placed on their table, the delicious aroma sliding down Roxas's nose. He gripped his fork, ready to plunge it down and ravage all the food when Sora gave him this "look." Roxas only blinked, before an understanding came over him. So, he grasped his fork and knife more gently before neatly eating his meal, cutting the meat and plopping it into his mouth. Sora flashed him a satisfied glance at that before digging into his meal as well. If Roxas had to describe his meal, it would've had the word "heaven" in it. The food was glorious and was definitely the tastiest meal Roxas ever indulged in.

After their meal, Sora slammed a few letters on the table, making Roxas flicker his eyes over to the grinning brunet in confusion. It took Roxas only a few seconds to comprehend what the letters were. A dull look was soon directed towards his gleeful cousin.

"Really?" Roxas questioned, an eyebrow arched, not amused. Sora laughed loudly, his playful blue eyes lighting up with happiness.

"Yes, really!" Sora yelled out, a wicked grin slowly growing wider. He tore the first one out of the seven he placed on the table, reading over it quickly, before shoving it towards Roxas. "Read this one!" Tentatively, Roxas picked the love note from Sora's hand.

_Dear Sora, _

_You're so hot and sexy! I loved the way you winked at me during classes! I love your crazy brown hair, electrifying blue eyes and fantastic fine body. We should hook up sometime! Then maybe, I'll blow your whistle! ;D_

_Love and Kisses,_

_Ariel :)_

After reading the small message, Roxas sent a dry look towards his cousin. Sora responded with a flattering wink, making the blond groan in disgust. Roxas dropped the letter on the table, before clutching another one from the table. He ripped it open from the mail letter it was contained in, reading over the context. Once again, Roxas groaned, slapping the card back down on the table.

"Sora, these love letters aren't romantic at all.." Roxas declared, rubbing his temples in aggravation. The blond wasn't sure whether to laugh or snort at Sora's broad smile. Like Sora said, the cards were hilarious but they were a bit silly and indecent. "I feel like the people who sent you these cards weren't trying to be serious at all.." Sora gave a slight pout, crossing his arms in disagreement.

"Well, at least I receive love letters!" Roxas scowled, narrowing his eyes at Sora, before a slight gasp of realization escaped him. Didn't Sora mentioned that there was a card sent to him?

"But I did receive a letter! The one you took from me!" Sora blinked, his mouth opening wide. Without a single word, Sora reached for the inside of his coat and handed the card to him, curious eyes peering intently at the letter. Roxas stared down at the letter, engraving every detail into his head. Then, he slowly opened it.

It was...

Cute, he guessed... There were hearts scrambled all over the letter in pink, red and purple crayons. The handwriting was a bit sloppy, appeared a bit rushed but the content wasn't long. Roxas heard a couple, muffled giggles escape his cousin, a hand pressed against his mouth, his eyes twinkling with amusement. The blond only sent a little harsh glare at the brunet, who smiled innocently. Feeling his face reddening, he started to read the letter.

_Roxas,_

_When I first laid my eyes on you, I want you to be mine and mines only. I'm infatuated with your smile, eyes, mouth, nose, body, laugh, hands, everything... The dazzling ocean is no match for your brilliant, bright, blue eyes. Your gorgeous smile is brighter than any existing star in the vast space. Your body surpasses even God's most perfect creation. Everything about you is perfection. I love you and only you.._

_Will you be my Valentine?_

_Love__,_

_Secret Admirer _

Sora started laughing loudly, making Roxas blush in embarrassment. The blond scowled, his face warm, as he stared daggers into his cousin. Roxas couldn't help but feel flattered, his chest beating quickly. He was a bit relieved as well when he found no suggestions of anything sexual like Sora's letters. Plus, it's not like he ever received a letter before..

"This looks like something Namine would draw." Sora was pointing at the awfully drawn hearts, snickering a bit. "Maybe Namine wrote this to you.."

"Namine does not draw like that!" Roxas said a bit defensively, narrowing his eyes at Sora. "Plus, why would she even want to send me a letter? I don't even talk to her that much!" Sora stopped laughed, his lips still curved up.

"You're right! Why would she give you a letter when she already gave me this one?!" Sora placed on a huge grin, snatching one of the delicate-looking letters off the table, wagging it around. Roxas went wide-eyed, shocked.

"She sent you a letter!" Roxas spluttered, mouth gaped open. "B-But she wouldn't write anything like _that_!" Roxas was referring to the implied promises of sex in the letters he have read so far. Sora sent him another damned wink, his face pleased.

"I have my ways.." Sora purred, his face frozen in a huge grin before it toned down into a small smile. "Just kidding, she would never ever send me anything like that. We started this thing in high school where we would send letters on Valentine's Day. We would just compliment each other, nothing too big." Roxas sighed in ease, his face relaxing from the horrified expression that was previously placed on his face.

"Ugh, of course she wouldn't do that.." Roxas groaned, planting his face in his hands. Namine was an elegant girl, not some slut Sora would associate with.

"You know, maybe some twelve year old girl wrote that letter to you! She's probably crushing on you!" Sora declared, clasping his hands together tightly, a few laughs escaping him. Roxas glowered at his cousin, a scowl placed on his face.

"It was a cute letter..." Roxas stated awkwardly, his face turning pink. Sora chuckled at him, before standing up, stretching his stiff limbs out. It was late at night and most of the customers had already left the fancy restaurant.

"Ready to go?" Sora questioned. Roxas nodded, lifting himself up from the comfy chair.

They were soon out of the heated restaurant, walking straight to the car, shivering from the cool night. Roxas was feeling quite satisfied by the end of the day. His stomach was full, purring in content. While his ego stood tall, triumph about the lovely letter he received. He was satisfied, along with a small flicker of curiosity. However, his fulfilling night will shortly end. After tonight, he would be back at his job, taking orders for customers all day, living his boring life.

Sometimes, Roxas just wanted a change from the usual routine that devoured his life. If anything, he wished for it deeply.

* * *

**A/N:** Is it obvious I got lazy at the end? I really want to slap myself for writing another story idea. So, this will probably be the last multi-chaptered story idea I'll post until I finish one of my other stories. I was just in a mood to write something dark like this. But we haven't really went anywhere with this chapter yet.. But, it'll get darker later on.. I'm just so ughh. I need to write a story with more romance next time.. Actually, I promise the next multi-chaptered story idea I'll ever post next will be romantic.

I was actually a bit conflicted on whether to make this with some other character but I was like never mind, might as well use my favorite characters. i am so tired and bored... I think I'll look over it tomorrow ;D

Plus, I'm not good at writing love letters so it's a bit weirdly written. LOL, I was gonna write a love poem but then I realized I sucked at writing poems... :D

Sorry if this chapter was a bit boring, I'm not sure if I liked it since it's not that interesting. I'm going to work on my other stories after this..


	2. Chapter 2: Day 1-2

**Chapter 2**

* * *

After eating dinner that night, Sora drove him back to his apartment. The whole car trip consisted of Sora humming horribly out of tune to the radio. Roxas attempted to doze off but his mind kept wandering off to the letter. So, he spent his time thinking absent-mindedly to himself, ignoring Sora's awful attempt at singing. Then, they arrived at his apartment. Sora waved him off which was accompanied by a flirtatious wink. Roxas only sent him an awkward smile, thanking him for the dinner, before mumbling a "goodbye." Sora grinned mischievously, before a few loud words decided to slip out of the brunet's mouth.

"Happy Valentine's Day!" Sora yelled out from the car, causing Roxas to freeze in his tracks. Roxas swiftly spun around to face Sora, his face mixed between irritation and embarrassment.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah... Happy Valentine's Day." Roxas replied, his voice a lot softer than Sora's. Roxas wasn't sure his cousin was able to hear his quiet response until Sora flashed him a smile, nodding along to his previous words. Then, Sora opened his mouth, about to scream out a reply. Roxas interrupted before Sora had a chance. Light blue eyes narrowed in aggravation, while a harsh whisper came out. "Sora, keep your voice down. It's almost midnight! People are trying to sleep.."

Sora blinked, before rubbing his head sheepishly. Roxas turned around, intent on walking straight to his apartment. However, Sora decided to shout again, though a bit hushed. "Sweet dreams! Don't let the love letter get to your ego! You don't want to end up as cocky as Riku!" Once again, Roxas paused again, his face burning at the thought of the letter. Roxas turned to flash Sora an embarrassed frown, along with an agitated glare.

"That's not going to happen, you moron!" Sora sent him a small, amused smile, laughing loudly at the strangely scrunched up face Roxas made in his annoyance. Roxas huffed, scowling at his cousin, before stating rather angrily. "I'm leaving!" Sora's smile grew to a grin, before a loud "goodbye" was directed to him.

Roxas broke out into a small sprint, running to the stairs before stopping. He took one more glance at Sora, who was backing his car up, before trudging up the stairs. Roxas shivered, as the cold bit into him. Teeth chattering, he quickened his pace. After a couple flight of stairs, Roxas finally reached his apartment. He entered his apartment, only feeling a slight change in the temperature. Trembling, he turned on the heater in his living room.

Roxas entered his room, rubbing his eyes tiredly. It had been a long night... Unfortunately, he was expected to be at work tomorrow by nine-thirty. Roxas really wanted to sleep in, especially after the long night he spent with Sora. Sighing in exhaustion, Roxas shrugged off his coat. It was clear Roxas wasn't in the mood to hang his coat so he did the next best thing. He hurled it towards a pile of dirty clothes in the corner of his room. His recent clothes were tossed in there as well. Frowning, Roxas realized the pile of clothes hadn't been washed in a month. But all thoughts of dirty laundry quickly left his mind as a tired yawn escaped him. His body felt worn out, head light with weariness. Roxas let out another yawn, before flopping onto his bed. Then, he was knocked out, snoring peacefully to himself as his body wrapped itself around his thin blanket.

* * *

**February 15- Day 2**

* * *

Upon waking up, Roxas smelled that horrendous stench he always woke up to. His body was sprawled out on the bed, legs and arms in the oddest position ever. As usual, his back ached from sleeping on the lumpy mattress he decided to purchase. It was time for him to leave for work, despite how much his body was protesting. Slowly, he arose from his bed while his body creaked in disapproval. His flimsy blanket slid off him, making him shiver. The room was freezing, causing his body to break out into goosebumps.

Roxas briskly dressed for work, placing on the same stained shirt from the day before and a pair of clean jeans. Sadly, his tidy hairstyle from the previous night was now disheveled. The blond locks were tangled together and coated in gunky substance, which was most likely from the gel he used. Roxas made the quick decision to race to his bathroom to swiftly arrange his hair the way he liked it. For once in a long time, Roxas actually _felt _like cleaning his appearance up. Whether, it was how nice he thought he looked with his styled hair or simply the letter he received. Roxas felt inclined to fix his image up. He spent a decent amount of time trying to imitate the same style from the night before.

After dealing with his hair, he grabbed a nice, warm coat out of his bedroom, recalling how cold his body felt in the chilling weather. He left his room and proceeded down to his living room, stepping over all the junk on his floor with little difficulty, while turning off the heater. Roxas stuffed the wallet and key he found on his disorganized table down his pocket before walking to his front door, preparing himself mentally for the long day at work.

Roxas pulled his front door open, ready to take a step forwards. However, his eyes automatically flew downwards to a bouquet of vibrant, lively flowers lying in front of his doorstep. Red roses were piled together, their amazing aroma shooting straight into Roxas's nose. Roxas stared at it blankly for a few seconds, before finally letting loose a reaction.

Roxas opened his mouth in shock, wide blue eyes flickered around the apartment complex, searching for the person who decided to leave him such a gift. After finding not a single person, he picked up the bouquet cautiously and brought it back into his messy place. He placed it on his dining table, which was currently flooded with paperwork. Biting his lip, Roxas observed the bouquet. The flowers were beautiful and they appeared to be carefully arranged in order. After appreciating the flowers, his eyes caught sight of a envelope placed in the bouquet. It was hidden behind the wrapping paper, the edge just barely peeping out. Roxas bit his lip anxiously, before reaching down to grab it a bit hastily.

Roxas peered down at the envelope curiously, feeling his heart rate quicken. A slight blush appeared on his face. Was it another love letter? Roxas didn't know how to feel about the sudden flood of affection. If anything, it was a bit embarrassing for him. Even though he only achieved three gifts so far, it felt like he received a hundred. Any type of gifts were a rare occasion in his life. Roxas rarely received them, whether it was Christmas, Valentine's Day, or his own birthday. Roxas wasn't like Sora, who basically showered in gifts every year. Roxas wasn't used to the affection and love he was gaining. He was just a normal guy, with nothing particularly special about him.

Gripping the envelope, his hands felt jittery in anxiety. He ripped it open with his thumb, before reaching in to pull out.. paper? No, it wasn't "paper." Roxas only stared at it with dumbfounded eyes, his mind not able to process the item in front of eyes properly. Then, he immediately gawked at it, finally comprehending through the haze of his shock. It was green paper! It was _cash_! **Money**! Normally, Roxas wouldn't be making a big deal about cash but the _amount _of money placed in his hands was tremendous. Trembling in elation, he started counting, slowly rolling the money in his hands..

One hundred...

Two hundred...

Three hundred...

Four hundred...

Five hundred!

_Jesus_! It was five hundred dollars. That was the amount Roxas was able to make in a week's worth of work. Why would anyone ever want to give him money? How **crazy** was this person? Either someone was playing a cruel joke on him or they must've really liked him to be able to give him cash. Despite how ridiculous this might've been, it had Roxas grinning, smiling ear to ear. He would've never imagined anything like **this **to come out of the envelope. Honestly, Roxas was expecting another love letter of some sort. Whoever decided to present him with such a lovely gift definitely has to be rich. No fool would've ever been willing to give away such a high amount of money. However, it wasn't really his problem to worry about.

Beaming with bliss, Roxas placed the money in his wallet. Then, he quickly exited his apartment, making sure to lock the front door before practically skipping down the stairs in joy. Roxas checked his watch, pausing. Like most days, Roxas normally walked to the train station. It was usually five dollars for a day pass ticket which was pretty affordable in his opinion.

It took about fifteen minutes for Roxas to arrive at his destination. After purchasing his ticket, Roxas placed himself on a bench, silently waiting for the train to arrive. For the last few years, riding the train was how Roxas reached work. However, coming home was somewhat a different story. Some days, Sora was there to drive him home. Though, until last night, Sora never bothered entering his messy apartment. On other days, he took the train home. The same as his mornings.

It wasn't long before a train halted into a stop, allowing Roxas to enter the train. Roxas took his usual seat by the window, watching as a few people stumbled in. After a short while, the train started to move. Roxas gazed out the window, watching the view zoom through his eyes, preoccupied in his thoughts. A small smile was seen on his face, as he thought over the gift he had received. Then, a bell rang in the air, accompanied with a woman's voice.

_'We'll be arriving at Arapaho Center Station soon.'_

Roxas snapped out of his daze, blinking himself out of his little stupor. The ride felt short compared to most days, which was a bit surprising. However, Roxas shrugged it off, as he stood up from his seat. He exited the train, yawning a little. Luckily, Roxas's workplace was right outside the train station which was quite relieving for him. It usually meant no walking in the cold weather.

Roxas entered the fast-food restaurant, hearing the door ring as he stepped foot into the empty workplace. The familiar aroma of greasy hamburgers and french fries immediately smacked his smelling senses. A head quickly popped out from behind the kitchen which Roxas quickly identified to be his boss. A huge smile appeared on her face, as she welcomed him in.

"Roxas!" She greeted, her smile widening. "How are you?" Roxas sent her a huge smile, making his way towards her. His boss was a cheerful young woman, who was always happy to see him every morning. Her forest green eyes glittered in pleasure, as her youthful smile brought out her good looks. Sora was always playfully flirting with her, even though she was most likely in her early thirties, along with having a boyfriend. She always participated in the teasing as well, but she was never serious about it. Thankfully, Sora wasn't sincere in his teasing as well. Roxas could never imagine his boss and Sora dating.

"I'm feeling great, Ms. Allen." Roxas interjected, eyes gleaming. Ms. Allen would always tell Roxas to refer her by her first name but Roxas preferred using her last name, mostly because it was a bit more appropriate. "Thanks for asking!" Strangely, Roxas had his words oozing with happiness, something that wasn't quite in the norm.

Ms. Allen widened her eyes, a bit shocked. She never expected to see such a big smile on Roxas's face, mostly due to the sullen frowns he usually expressed each day. The only smiles that appeared on the his face were the ones when he was working. However, instead of his smiles being genuine, they were either polite, strained or downright annoyed smiles. She sent a curious glance towards Roxas, wondering what caused such a bright grin on his usual sour face.

"Did something great happen?" She questioned, eyes taking in her subordinate's figure, noticing his somewhat cleaner appearance. "You look nice today! Was it your dinner date with Sora?" Roxas let out a small, joyful laugh, resisting the urge to snort. Sure, he loved his dinner with Sora but there was no way that would have made him feel like he was on cloud nine.

"Yeah, something great _did_ happen but it sure wasn't Sora that caused it." Roxas replied, gleaming happily. He trudged towards the counter, before reaching his apron from the rack. The place was about to open in ten minutes. However, business was pretty slow in the mornings, which allowed Roxas to relax a bit before people came crowding in.

Standing in front of the cash register, Roxas let out another bright smile. He was definitely prepared for today's worth of work.

* * *

A small grumble came out of a certain blond cashier, along with an irritated frown. Today was just not going well at all. For some reason, it felt like a flock of bad, grumpy customers decided to come ruin his day. All the complaints just drained his positive attitude. His jubilant smile was dead by the end of the day, replaced with an annoyed scowl.

To his relief, his shift was about to end in thirty minutes. Normally, business slowed down at the end of the day as well. If anything, Roxas wasn't expecting another customer to come by and order. There were only a few people seated in the booths, chowing down on their burgers and fries. However, there were a few that were preoccupied with their laptops. Nevertheless, Roxas spent his time tapping his finger on the counter, glaring impatiently at the restaurant's clock.

After staring at the clock, his mind started to drift off. It wasn't long before he was off thinking absent-mindedly to himself, rubbing his fatigued eyes. Minutes passed by, accompanied with Roxas staring at the clock dully. He held his head in his hand, arm propped on the counter. His eyes was starting to flutter close, as everything started blurring together in his weariness. But then, one of the energetic kids halfway across the restaurant started to shriek in delight, startling Roxas from his daze.

Blinking his eyes awake, Roxas flickered his eyes away from the clock. He brought his attention back to his cashier but they quickly widened his eyes in surprise. There was a customer in front of him! Roxas must've not noticed him in his state of boredom. Roxas silently cursed himself, blaming his exhausted eyes for not catching sight of the customer. Placing on a strained smile, Roxas started his usual lines.

"Hello sir! How may I help you today?" Roxas said in his "enthusiastic" voice. There was a slight pause before Roxas decided to add in. "Also, I apologize for the slight delay." Roxas wasn't quite sure how long he left the person waiting but they didn't seem to be bothered. Honestly, Roxas couldn't tell how the customer was feeling because of the black hoodie hiding their entire face. Really, the hoodie was halfway over the guy's head, hiding everything except his nose and mouth.

Roxas just stared at the customer, his eyes starting to narrow impatiently. The guy hadn't even spoke a single word yet. He was standing there, while his body appeared to be frozen, not moving a single inch. A bit irritated, Roxas chose to say nothing, deciding to give the customer some more time. There was a chance the guy was still contemplating his food choices.

Though, what other choices did the guy had other than a nice juicy hamburger, along with some fries?

Roxas frowned slightly, observing the customer a bit more closely. Roxas could've sworn he saw the guy a few hours back, hiding in the corner of the restaurant, with nothing but a small notebook. There was a possibility he had been working here for a few hours, before deciding to grab a nice meal. Plus, he must've been here a couple of times as well in the past few weeks because Roxas vaguely recalled a hooded figure, occupied in his journal. However, Roxas wasn't able to remember if the guy ever ordered a meal before today.

The awkward silence quickly started to bother the blond worker. Finally, Roxas couldn't stand it any longer.

"Sir?" Roxas grated out behind his clenched smile, dripping with false friendliness. "Are you ready to order? I'm pretty sure you don't have all day to make your choice." He added in quite nicely. Even though Roxas wasn't able to detect it with his eyes, he could almost sense a blank stare behind the hood. Roxas was absolutely certain that another silence was about to occur, so he opened his mouth to address the customer. However, the guy beat him to it.

"... I guess I'll just have the small fries." The man uttered slowly, low in his voice. "... I think I'll have a large coke as well." He added in as an afterthought. Roxas flatly stared at the man. All that waiting for a cup of small fries? Roxas felt the huge urge to shake his head in disbelief at the guy, but he held it in. Instead, he grabbed the biggest cup stacked, filling it up with coca cola. After the simple act, Roxas passed the drink to the customer.

"Will that be all for today?" Oh how Roxas _loved _saying that. There was another pause and Roxas almost groaned. Once again, Roxas was about to repeat his line but the guy decided to speak before any words were able to escape from him.

"...Nope. That'll be it for today." The man vocalized. Roxas didn't quite understand the hesitant pause the customer initiated but he chose to ignore it.

"Okay, your total will be $3.99. Would you like the receipt?" Roxas sent a tiny, polite smile at the customer, watching how the guy paused. Slowly, the customer shook his head. Roxas's smile grew larger, hiding all signs of irritation, before he exclaimed. "Your order will be out with you soon!"

After uttering his last statement, Roxas relaxed from his stiff posture, staring at the customer cautiously. The man was still standing there, his form rigid, barely giving a nod to his previous words. Roxas felt a bit bothered by the fact he couldn't see the man's face under that hoodie. Honestly, in his opinion, the customer was a perfect example on how most criminals would've dressed. The guy was wearing all black which definitely looked suspicious as hell. All he really needed was a black ski mask and some sort of weapon. Then, he'd definitely be ready to rob a bank.

Though, Roxas wasn't really the one to judge based on appearance, especially regarding the way he dressed himself. Roxas was pretty certain he must've appeared as a slob to most people's eyes. Unfortunately, he most likely wouldn't have considered being a messy pig as an insult because quite frankly, it was the sad truth. However, the thought of it only depressed Roxas. It wasn't like he didn't_ want_ to dress nicely or look clean! He just didn't have the time and dedication for it anymore.

Frowning, Roxas argued with himself, not realizing he was staring rather intensely at the customer while his mind was stuck in a daze. Then, a bell ringed in the back, snapping Roxas out of his daydreaming. Blinking, Roxas sent the customer a stiff smile, feeling a bit uneasy by the unmoving stance the man was holding. Roxas swiftly moved back to grab the customer's order, noticing the odd stare he was receiving from one of his coworkers.

Clenching the bag, Roxas sent a questionable glance to the worker.

"Is something wrong?" Roxas whispered under his breath, observing the strange expression on his coworker's face. Quickly, the young worker shook his head, looking a bit flustered as he glanced away from Roxas's blue eyes.

"Oh, it's nothing. Just thought of something weird... You don't really need to worry about it."

Roxas arched an eyebrow, nodding slowly in confusion, mumbling an "okaaaay." Then, he moved back to the counter, handing the bag of french fries to the customer with another false smile of his. Roxas was a bit surprised to hear a word of acknowledgement come out of the customer but he handled it with ease. Roxas smiled even bigger, before turning away from the guy, taking a fast glance at the clock. He had about five minutes left.

Today was a Saturday, which meant Sora wasn't here to drive him home. Usually, his cousin was able to drive him home every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Every other day, Sora was working late for some sort of company. Roxas always felt more comfortable driving home with Sora. On the days he took the train home, it was usually dark and creepy walking home. Roxas didn't really live around the best part of the city. His apartment was around the slums and it was usually inhabited by some rowdy people. Also, there were so many cases where Roxas had his possessions stolen while he was walking home. He'd be walking down a street when some stranger would pull out their knife and threaten him to give them all his money. Needless to say, Roxas preferred driving home with Sora, feeling safe and sound right next to his cousin.

Roxas took off his apron, sliding it into the rack. Then, he grabbed his coat from the rack, placing it on. He began trudging his way to the kitchen, stopping in front of his boss. Ms. Allen was busy talking to one of the workers, not noticing the young blond standing there. Roxas coughed a little, trying to grab his boss's attention. The conversation stopped, before forest green eyes glanced at him.

"Ms. Allen," Roxas started, sending her a small smile. "I'm going home now. I'll see you on Monday." His boss nodded, smiling warmly at him, before waving a goodbye.

"Have a nice day, Roxas! You've done well today." She verbalized, patting him on the back. Then, Roxas was out of the kitchen, ready to leave. He had all his stuff with him. His wallet and keys were still jiggling around his coat's pocket which was relieving. From the inside of the building, Roxas could see it was dark outside. The bright lights of various shops were illuminating the dark streets.

A bright, joyful expression began to light up his face, along with a small few hints of exhaustion. The only thing Roxas could think about was the nice, long day ahead of him. A day of lazing around always sounded the best for him. Plus, Roxas had a few hundred of dollars he now owned. He could just imagine the amount of food he can take out.

Going through all the possibilities, Roxas started strolling to the door. He was almost at the door when a sudden cold, wet feeling startled him. Bewildered, Roxas glanced down at his chest, only to discover his clothes drenched in soda. Roxas flickered his eyes up in irritation, expecting to find some child who decided to spill their drink on him. Instead, he was greeted by his previous customer, the hooded figure. Even more annoyed, his eyes strayed to the large cup the guy was holding, which was still suspended in midair. Roxas clenched his teeth, before breathing in deeply. There was no reason to be angry.. But damn it, there were going to be stains on his already messy shirt and coat.

"Sorry, sir." Roxas spitted out, as nicely as he could. "I must've not been watching where I was going." Just as Roxas expected, there was no immediate response which was quick to make him feel uncomfortable and aggravated. Roxas glanced up at the guy, a bit unnerved when he was met with a slight frown, along with his hoodie pulled down over his eyes. Roxas diverted his eyes before mumbling. "I'm going to grab some napkins..."

His drenched shirt was clinging to his skin, making Roxas shift awkwardly. Sending the guy a quick nod, he made a move to step towards the bathroom. But then a hand clenched his arm, making Roxas glance back in alarm.

"Uhh, is there a problem?" Roxas stated, eyeing the hand squeezing his arm. The man only shook his head, shuffling anxiously as he tightened his grip.

"I-um-I have some napkins with me already." The guy muttered, using his other hand to grab a stack load of napkins out of his pocket. Roxas blinked, surprised by the amount of napkins the guy decided to stuff in his pocket before narrowing them suspiciously. Something about this didn't feel right. It felt as if this whole situation was a set-up. The way the guy's drink decided to spill all over his shirt and the way he was already carrying a bunch of napkins made this entire thing feel a little planned. But maybe Roxas was putting too much thought in it.

"Do you usually carry that much napkins with you?" Roxas questioned, curious to hear an answer. The guy chuckled, his laugh sounding light and pleased. Roxas just stared at the man. Despite the awkward attitude, the guy actually sounded pretty normal laughing.

"Yeah, I do. I'm prone to being clumsy so hence the history of dropping food on myself. Sorry, I didn't mean to spill my drink on you." Surprisingly, the guy sounded casual. Roxas lowered his eyes, studying the guy's clothes. There wasn't a single stain on his clothes. Maybe the stains were underneath that hoodie of his. Or maybe he was lying... Whatever the truth was, Roxas chose to believe the guy's words.

"Oh okay, that sounds reasonable.. Uhh, you don't really need to help me clean. I can do that myself since I'm a worker here." The guy was crouched down on the ground, wiping the floor. Roxas sighed as he kneeled down besides him, grabbing another napkin before scrubbing along with the guy. After many drenched napkins later, the floor was clean. Though, it was a bit sticky as well. Roxas sent the guy an appreciative look, mumbling his thanks. Then, he looked down at his clothes, groaning silently to himself when he realized he was still wet with icky substance.

"I think I'm going to go clean myself up now." Roxas vocalized, as he attempted to stand up from his crouched position. However, once again, the man gripped his arm. Silently, the guy started dabbing his clothes with napkins. Roxas only sent the man an uneasy smile, before muttering a hesitant word of protest. "Uhh, you don't really have to do that for me.. But thanks, I guess." Seeing as the man made no attempts to stop his cleaning session, Roxas just remained there quietly.

"There, finished.." The guy murmured, dropping all the wet napkins to the ground with a plop. Roxas nodded his head, as he glanced down at his clothes. His shirt no longer felt as wet as before but it wasn't at all the cleanest. It was still sticky and clung to his skin uncomfortably. Plus, it was now dyed a light brown color from the soda, along with his ketchup stains. Roxas sighed softly, deciding he should probably buy a new shirt tomorrow during his free time, especially with the money he received.

"Again, thanks.." Roxas whispered, watching the guy stand up and throw the pile of wet napkins away.

Roxas stood up, as he prepared to leave the restaurant. He took one last look at the guy before stilling. Somehow, the hoodie was pushed back on the stranger's head, allowing Roxas to gaze at the man's face a little clearly. The man's eyes were staring, observing his actions. Roxas took notice of his intense eyes, feeling like he was under a serpent's trance. They were a bright green and they reminded Roxas of shiny gems... especially emeralds. Roxas didn't hesitate to voice his thoughts.

"Your eyes.. They're so green, it reminds me of glittering emeralds." Roxas was a bit startled when he heard the sharp intake of breath, then a shuddering whisper as the guy pulled his hoodie over his head to hide his eyes. Along with the strange behavior, Roxas felt something akin to deja-vu, feeling his mind try to piece to together the strong sense of familiarity with the very green eyes.

"Roxas.." Roxas widened his eyes, feeling a bit alarmed as the guy literally groaned out his name. The stranger must've sensed his startled pop-eyed stare because he quickly covered it up with a easygoing smile, though it appeared shady with the hoodie hiding most of his face. "It's Roxas, right? I remember seeing the nametag on your apron. Or am I wrong?"

"Oh yeah. That's my name." Roxas stated, nodding his head slowly. There was a silence after that, with Roxas staring intensely at the guy. Then, Roxas smiled at the guy, hiding the nagging itch inside his chest, somehow noticing the stranger's hand twitching, before saying. "Well, I'm going to go now. Bye." With a wave, Roxas left the man standing there as he exited the restaurant.

The cold weather was quick to bite into his skin, making Roxas tremble. Roxas quickly made his way across the street and down to the train station. As Roxas stood there waiting for the train, he couldn't help but ponder on the strange guy. His vivid green eyes couldn't stop popping up in his mind. Dazing off in his thoughts, all Roxas could think about was the familiarity of those intense green eyes and the way it drilled itself deep inside his head. Roxas frowned, before deciding to glance at the restaurant one last time. Roxas quivered as he noticed the figure standing at the window, gazing at him with his vehement green eyes underneath that hood of his.

Then, the train arrived, blocking the sight of the restaurant.

* * *

**A/N**: I'm feeling like crap these days. Unfortunately, I was extremely lazy while writing this chapter. Hopefully, that doesn't reflect on this chapter and omg, these chapters are so long compared to my other stories. But feel free to review and tell me your thoughts regarding this story! I'd love to hear them! :P

Oh, I'm gonna add the fact that Roxas is automatically assuming his secret admirer is a girl and that's normal. Plus, everyone is mostly straight in this story, including Roxas. Anyways, it'll be really easy to tell who's not straight in this story. And since there's nothing strange with Roxas's gifts so far, there's probably no reason to suspect anyone odd. If anything, he's imagining a nice, cute young girl because haha, why not! Once things start building up, then everything will start connecting together. However, that'll be many chapters later. I'm still in the planning process. Also, lol, nothing strange is happening so this sort of still feels like weird chapter to me.

_Reviewee_: Yeah, from the first chapter, this story could have tons of paths it could take. I could definitely see the story following what you were saying and if anything, I would've enjoyed this story just the same if it were written that way. I guess it really depends on what I want for this story. Starting this, I really wanted to write some sort of dark, one-sided romantic story which will most likely be the product. But THANKS, I feel so so so flattered that you enjoy all my stories. Seriously, thank you! Also, I think you're quite fine at reviewing! :D


	3. Chapter 3: Day 16-27

_**NOTE**_: There's a brief hint at some other couple (GIRL-GUY) than the one I put in my summary but it's pretty minor and it's not really a permanent couple. Plus, sorry if this chapter feels a bit boring to you! :P

**Chapter 3**

* * *

For some reason, Roxas had the impression that his friends were pulling a joke on him.

It has been two weeks since Valentine's Day. But the letters were still appearing, along with a new set of flowers every week. However, the letters seem to get sappier each time he read them. After a while, the love letters started to set off a suspicious spark in Roxas. Why would someone even make an effort to keep sending him gifts? Roxas could understand Valentine's Day since it was usually the holiday where people send presents to their crushes. But now, it was nearly the end of February and Roxas was starting to get a little tired of the letters.

Sora kept grinning at him, pleasantly surprised his cousin had a little secret admirer lurking somewhere. Then, he teasingly told Roxas to stop bragging which had the blond sputtering in irritation. Roxas didn't know what to say to his cousin about the letters, which usually left him scratching his head in confusion. Also, he couldn't understand how the letters kept appearing randomly in his apartment. The first day Sora pointed out the letter, Roxas brushed the thought aside, thinking he must've missed it somehow.

But now, Roxas realized there was no way he received it along with his pile of mail. Every morning, he would check every single mail he gained and each time there was not a single love letter in sight in his stack. However, by the end of the day, Roxas would find a pink letter adorned in hearts lying on top of his mail. It no longer made Roxas feel pleased, happy that someone out there cared about his awful life. It only caused him to narrow his eyes in suspicion, wondering who decided to play this silly joke on him.

Could it have been Sora? His cousin was there the day he was first given the letter. Sora could've easily slipped it into his messy table, before acting like his oblivious self. The money could've also been from the brunet since Roxas knew how Sora felt bad about his living conditions. But how did Sora find his way into his apartment? It's not like Roxas ever decided to give his cousin a key. He knew Sora despised the state of his apartment. So, there was no reason for the brunet to ever enter his little home.

Maybe it was one of his high school friends? But Pence wasn't the one to pull tricks at all... Olette was also a refined person, scolding Roxas whenever his actions got out of hand. Hayner? Well, Roxas could've believed it but he hadn't contacted him since they graduated. An action he regrets to this day. There was no way Hayner even had a clue where Roxas lived, especially from the way he was living. Roxas had moved away from his hometown the instant he graduated, wanting a new life. There was no doubt that Hayner would be extremely angry to see him again. All his other friends too...

The only people that knew he was living here was Sora and his friends. Which meant Riku, Kairi and Namine... But Roxas never bothered meeting up with them at all, since they were Sora's friends, not his. Roxas didn't had time for friends anymore, all he needed was his job and his apartment. He was completely happy the way he was living. But somewhere inside Roxas knew he wasn't content.. He wasn't loving his life at all...

But it was fine! Roxas was completely independent. He didn't need anyone telling him how to live his life. He was extremely content the way his life was running.

Or maybe not...

* * *

**March 1- Day 16**

* * *

It was finally a new month. Today was a Saturday, a work day. But the thought of getting up and ready had Roxas rolling around his bed in exhaustion, the urge to keep sleeping strong. Eventually, Roxas was able to remove himself from his stiff bed to carelessly dress himself up in his wrinkled clothes before running out into his living room, not caring about his bed hair or the poor state of his bedroom. As usual, he grabbed his keys and wallet, stuffing them into his pocket before walking out of the door.

Once again, the second he took a step outside, there was a random gift lying on his doorstep. This time, Roxas didn't widen his eyes in surprise, nor did he grin like a lovesick fool. Instead, Roxas groaned miserably, rubbing his eyes tiredly before leaning down to grab the anonymous gift. It was a wrapped present, like something a person would expect to see during their birthday or Christmas. Roxas dragged the gift back into his table of disorganized items, which included the love letters and mail he received from the past month.

After placing it on the table, Roxas started ripping off the wrapping, a small frown on his face. The tearing was a bit hard but Roxas managed to remove all the wrapping. After observing his bare gift, Roxas let out a sigh, somewhat expecting the elegant chocolates and the love letter hidden inside. However, he didn't stop to read the letter or chow down on the food, instead Roxas left the dejected gift on his table and left the apartment, rushing to the train station. After spending his fifteen minutes walking, he went through the whole process of purchasing his ticket before entering the train. Sitting in his seat, Roxas took a deep breath and closed his eyes, dazing off.

The letters were always telling him the same thing over and over. Somehow, it was starting to grow a little annoying. Though, Roxas felt bad for thinking so, mostly because the person behind it was putting so much effort in everything. The chocolates, flowers and presents looked really expensive and they were always sent to him every other day. The gifts were spectacular and it always felt so good to have someone tell him that he was attractive. The letters definitely boosted his ego but Roxas couldn't help but feel a little unsatisfied by it all.

He didn't have a single clue on who this person might be. This was definitely a good reason to suspect Sora was pranking him even though Roxas was lacking a bit of proof. Sighing a little, Roxas rubbed the back of his head, feeling confused.

He just didn't know what to think anymore.

* * *

An hour before his shift was over, Sora decided to come and visit the restaurant, gracing the place with his glamorous presence. As usual, Sora immediately looked towards Roxas's direction to flash him a wink. Roxas only responded with an embarrassed groan, resisting the urge to face palm. Sora only grinned, striding over to the counter where Roxas was standing.

"What are _you _doing here?" Roxas grumbled, crossing his arms. Sora was never able to come here on Saturdays, so Roxas was somewhat expecting a good reason from his cousin. Plus, Sora would never come here for the food since he was always quite picky about everything, which included the nutritious substance the brunet would stuff down his throat. So, hamburgers and french fries weren't exactly anything healthy to eat...

"I came to see you, baby!" Sora interjected jokingly, sending Roxas another one of his infamous winks. Roxas sent Sora a blank stare, clearly not amused by the brunet's words.

"Yeah right." Roxas stated dully, as he glanced around his cousin for any customers. Seeing none, Roxas focused on Sora's beaming face. The brunet was literally jumping around happily, making Roxas narrow his eyes slightly in suspicion.

Sora had this funny smile going on, his light blue eyes twinkling with mirth. It was awfully odd to see. Though, the weirdness of the situation was not because Sora wasn't naturally a cheerful person. It was mostly due to the fact Sora was _always _freaking exhausted when coming back from work, unless there was some sort of special occasion. The days Sora drove him home were filled with silence, the only sounds coming from the radio. The dazzling smile on his cousin's face wasn't the usual tired grin he was used to seeing after a long day at work...

"Did something good happened?" Roxas questioned, all of his attention flying to Sora, watching the brunet's every move. However, Sora paid no heed to his watchful eyes. Instead, Sora grinned even wider, his teeth glistening brightly.

"Hmm, should I tell you?" Sora was tapping on the counter, a thoughtful expression on his face. Roxas only scoffed, feeling more curious as the seconds flew by. Sora must've sensed his wondering stare because the grin on the his cousin's face grew even more sinister. It was obvious Sora was playing the role of an oblivious moron to attract his interest and sadly, it was working. If Sora didn't tell him right now, Roxas would've probably tried to beat it out of him.

"Tell me what?" Roxas's voice was flat, though there was a hint of interest hidden in his voice. "Did you fuck someone? Is that why you're literally jumping around in excitement?" Sora's huge smile faltered a little as his cerulean eyes grew wide in shock. A small surprised gasp escaped Sora but Roxas paid no heed to it. There was no reason for Sora to be startled. Since they were little, Sora was always talking about girls. Either that or he was flirting with them... "So, am I right?"

"No, I didn't "fuck" anyone!" Sora smiled, slapping Roxas's arm teasingly, though it was a bit rough. "I'm not some playboy! Jeez, Roxas, I thought you knew me better than that!" Roxas was pretty sure he knew _exactly _how Sora acted. In fact, Roxas was absolutely confident Sora was always hooking up with girls. Roxas only sent Sora a disbelieving stare, lips curled into a small frown. Sora responded with a pout, exclaiming, "I swear this doesn't have anything to do with me! But I do have a little surprise for you!"

"... A surprise?" Roxas perked up, tilting his head at the statement. Did Sora buy him something? "Did you get me something? Where is it?" Roxas said softly, feeling his interest rising. He couldn't help but get a little excited as he anticipated Sora's answer. It wasn't like Sora to shock him with big presents. The only time Sora bought him anything was his birthday or some other holiday. Sadly, Sora was the **only **one who bothered with gifts.

But it wasn't like there was any special occasion today... There was no way Sora was playing a joke on him since April Fool's Day was a month from today. Unless, by some chance, Sora wanted to admit he was the one playing that awful Valentine's Day joke on him. But there was no guarantee he was even the one doing all that. For all Roxas knew, it could've been some creep or twelve year old girl sending him the gifts. But Roxas would have rather not think about his letters like that.

"Well, aren't you getting a little excited?" Sora smiled widely, before leaning towards Roxas. Then, the brunet started to whisper. "Roxas, she's not an it.. The "surprise" I have is waiting outside. Come on, she's waiting for you..." Sora was jumping a little an excitement, as he tugged Roxas out from behind the counter. Roxas had to widen his eyes at that, a protest beginning to fall out.

"Wha- She!?" Roxas exclaimed, his mouth gaped open. Sora only pulled on his arm harder, causing Roxas to grunt in surprise. Apparently, Sora was starting to lead Roxas outside of the restaurant, the cold biting into them as the door opened. "Sora! I can't leave yet! My shift isn't over yet, you moron! I'll get in trouble! Seriously, I don't need your help to hook up with people!" Sora only shook his head, as a grin began to develop on his face.

"You won't get in trouble! Your boss **likes **me! Remember?" Sora's features morphed, triumph sparkling clear in his eyes. Roxas only groaned at the reminder, jerking his arm away from his grinning cousin.

"I'm going back inside! I don't need-"

"Sora, is that you? Why did you make me wait outside?" A small soft voice interrupted, causing Roxas to stop abruptly.

His eyes began to slowly turn to the person, mouth gaped open in surprise. As soon as Roxas's eyes took in the view of the person, he immediately flushed. Sora had a silly smirk on his face, his cerulean blue eyes twinkling. His whole face just screamed, _"I knew it!" _Roxas only ignored Sora, feeling his heart began to quicken. Hastily, the blond started running a hand through his hair, smoothing out his wrinkled shirt and pants. Then, gorgeous ocean blue eyes made contact with his own light blue causing Roxas to swoon. He had the strong urge to faint right there on the sidewalk.

It was _her_. It was Xion...

Roxas shook his head, sending Sora a wide-eyed glance, before placing his attention on Xion once again. Xion had finally recognize him and a jubilant smile was growing on her face. She stumbled forward, surprise shining in her eyes. A small blush had began to adorn her cheeks. Roxas had to take a deep breath at that. Xion was so beautiful...

"Roxas!? Is that you?"

"I-I-I.. Uhh, yeah..." Roxas stammered, certain he was blushing. He could feel his cheeks warming up in embarrassment, as a shy smile popped up. Roxas _knew _he was acting like a lovesick fool but he couldn't help it. Xion was literally his _everything_ from high school. She had been his friend, sister, crush and girlfriend. His meaning for her had changed every single year. The time Roxas had spent with her was precious and he knew Xion felt the same.

Freshman year, Roxas had been so nervous to make any friends. He talked with a few people but he was always too anxious about his new school life to ever become their friends. Nobody ever caught his attention, not even his closest friends at first. But then, Roxas found Xion, who had a lot in common with him which was quick to gain his interest. That year, after Roxas became Xion's friend, he started to talk to more and more people. To Roxas's surprise, he actually managed to make more than one friend by the end of the school year.

When the second school year swung on by, Roxas could feel himself becoming closer to Xion, who would smile adorably at him everytime he saw her. He started to hang out with her at least once a week. Whether it was playing games or having a contest on who could stuff the most marshmallows in their mouths, they did it all. They had grown closer together than the previous year. Roxas never felt uncomfortable talking to Xion, even when he was telling her all of his deepest secrets. They were family.. or "twins" from the way people were talking about it. Inseparable was the word for the two of them.

Junior year was the time where Roxas could feel himself developing a crush on Xion. Any tiny touches from the petite girl had Roxas burning up. He would hear his heart thumping so heavy in his chest... He started daydreaming in class, thinking about how he acted around Xion, wondering if that was what "love" felt like. That year, it almost felt like someone was squeezing his heart everytime he passed Xion that year.

Then, it was the last year of high school which was quick to become his most favorite out of the four years. Roxas had finally confessed his love and Xion had agreed. After that day, Roxas made sure to douse Xion with many kisses, hugging her everytime he saw her. She would always laugh so cutely. Even though it may not seem like it, Roxas was very affectionate when it came to Xion. It was clear Roxas was proud to call Xion his girlfriend.

But somewhere along the year, something must've screwed up Roxas's head because he never bothered to contact Xion nor his friends ever since he graduated. It's been so long that Roxas could almost forget why he decided to leave his town. But it didn't matter... The damage was done and Roxas never dared to think about it ever again. Everything before graduation was only a memory that deserved to disappear, even his most happiest memories. Sadly, Xion had been a huge chunk of those joyful days...

Roxas could only smile guiltily when found the huge grin that was showing up on Xion's face. Then, Roxas stiffened in surprise when Xion embraced him, wrapping her arms tightly around him in a warm hug. His blush only deepened and the loud _thumping _of his heart only returned. Then, she pulled away, staring up at Roxas in that adorable face of hers. Roxas lost himself as he looked into that face, feeling this _deep _urge to smother her with kisses.

Roxas started to lean closer to Xion, fluttering his eyes closed as he attempted to peck a small kiss onto her cheek. But instead of her soft skin, his lips came into contact with her palm which she was holding up. For the first time since Roxas walked outside, he finally realized Sora was with him. How? Sora let out a damn giggle as soon as Roxas's attempt failed. However, Roxas was too humiliated to even care about his cousin.

"O-Oh, sorry!" Roxas let out in a hurry, feeling his face burning. "I -uh- didn't really mean to do that.." Xion only stared at Roxas, shaking her head slowly, appearing to be as embarrassed as he was.

"Oh no! Don't be, Roxas! I just-" Xion paused, as she moved her eyes away from Roxas, appearing a little unsettled. "It's just... that I'm already dating somebody." Roxas widened his eyes in surprise, tensing up immediately.

"You're dating someone?" Roxas gasped out in surprise, reddening in mortification. He would've never guessed Xion was dating someone. She looked entirely the same since high school and it was hard to think there had been any change in Xion since then. But then again, Roxas could understand the reason as to why Xion currently has a boyfriend. She was cute with her wide navy blue eyes, small nose, adorable pouting mouth and petite body. She might've looked like the "average" type to a lot of people but to Roxas, she was gorgeous. This was probably the reason Roxas could feel his stomach clenching up and a small frown appearing.

Honestly, jealousy was never his favorite emotion.

But now, he could feel it constricting his heart, squeezing it so damn tightly. Despite the envy building up, Roxas placed on a joyous smile, with a slight strain to it. There was no reason to have any more feelings towards Xion. He already ended it the day after he graduated, whether she was aware of it or not. Also, Xion probably moved on since he moved away.

"So, who're you dating? Is he hotter than me?" Roxas teased, laughing a little. However, a little uncertainty began to pop up, feeling a bit insecure of the way he was dressed. Roxas wasn't really the nicest thing to look at anymore... Those days were pretty much gone after high school ended. It wasn't like he gained some extra pounds or anything! It had more to do with the way he didn't give a fuck on how he dressed anymore. Greasy hair, oily face and wrinkled clothes weren't really the best impression. Roxas could only hope Xion wasn't staring too hard at his face. Frowning slightly, Roxas reminded himself to clean up a little more better if Xion ever decided to come back and visit.

"The guy I'm dating... Well, he's amazing!" Xion declared, smiling softly at him. Roxas blushed, glancing at the sidewalk, trying to think of something to say. It figures Xion ignored his question. She probably didn't want to put him down or something.

"Do I know him?" Roxas said softly, anticipating Xion's answer. Xion stilled, her eyebrows furrowing together while a small frown appeared on her face. Roxas felt his heart stutter... From the way Xion was acting, he probably did know the guy she was dating. It was clear that Xion was hesitant in telling him... She wasn't even looking at him. The only thing she was doing right now was sending uneasy glances behind him, making Roxas remember Sora was still standing there, once again.

Roxas flickered his eyes back to Sora, who was tapping his foot. As soon as Roxas locked his focus on his cousin, the brunet started scratching his head, mumbling sheepishly that he'll be waiting inside the restaurant. Roxas watched as Sora stumbled back inside the place, finding a seat within one of the booths next to the windows.

"Uh yeah, you actually do know him!" Xion stated in a small smile, which appeared a little tense. Roxas only tilted his head to the side, a curious gleam entering his eyes. So apparently, he knew the guy she was dating. Roxas took a wild guess, predicting the person must've went to school with him. Since there was no way he would be acquainted with anyone Xion was currently meeting.

Unfortunately, Roxas was _very _familiar with the person Xion was dating. The moment Xion uttered who it was, Roxas could feel his eyes widening in shock, as his stomach twisted with some unknown feeling.

"It's Hayner... Do you remember him?" Of course Roxas remembered Hayner, his reckless friend from high school. Hayner was one of the first friends he made after he befriended Xion. However, thinking back on their relationship made Roxas's heart ache dully. Roxas just _knew _Hayner was pissed at him, especially after he ditched them the day after graduation. The thought of Xion dating Hayner was just plain bewildering to him. In Roxas's opinion, they were total opposites.

"Yeah... I do!" Roxas breathed out in an astonished tone, mouth gape open. Xion was still wearing her stiff smile, shoulders rigid along with her posture. "So, does Hayner still talk about me?" The blue-eyed blond asked, trying his best to make the situation a little less tense. Though, Xion only flinched at the question, which had Roxas's small smile faltering.

"He does talk about you but it isn't really..." Xion's words started to die off and her deep blue eyes immediately drew to the ground. It didn't take a lot to understand what Xion was about to say.

"So he **_is _**mad..." Xion sent Roxas an apologetic look, her eyes gleaming in worry, before nodding abruptly. Roxas furrowed his eyebrows together, frowning a little. He could only hope Xion didn't feel the same way about him. But whatever, Roxas tried to tell himself he shouldn't care too much about it... Since Hayner had a pretty good reason to not like him that much anymore.

"Yeah..." Xion mumbled, sounding a bit unhappy. However, her demeanor quickly changed into a small smile. "So Roxas, do you want to find a table to sit at? I'm feeling a bit cold. I think my hands are starting to go numb." Roxas smiled back sheepishly, before agreeing with a nod. Xion was right. It was too damn cold to stand outside and chat it up even _if_ they haven't seen each other since forever.

Then, they were both entering the restaurant, side by side like old friends again. Xion immediately crinkled her nose as soon as the smell of greasy hamburgers and french fries hit her smelling senses. Though, Roxas was completely unaffected by it, feeling certain he smelled the same way. They both headed towards Sora's booth and Roxas couldn't help but feel giddy as he made his way over. He was finally talking to Xion again and it felt amazing.

A huge grin appeared on Sora's face the moment they walked near by. Roxas made the same face, reflecting the grin back to Sora. Soon, Roxas was sliding right next to Sora while Xion took the other side of the table by herself.

"So Sora, how were you able to bring Xion over here?" Roxas asked curiously. He was actually quite eager to learn how Xion was able to come here. Even though Sora never talked to Xion that much in high school, the brunet had always been appreciative of the fact that Xion was always caring for Roxas no matter what. Sora must've known how much Xion meant to Roxas to bring her here.

"Well," Sora started, scratching the back of his head. "Xion started working at my company a few days ago and I sort of recognized her as one of your close friends from high school. So, I knew I had to bring her here to meet you!" Sora exclaimed, sending a wide smile at Xion, who chuckled happily. Roxas felt his chest warm up at the reply. Maybe Sora wasn't an idiot after all...

"Yeah and Sora didn't even tell me where we were heading! Imagine my surprise when we drove here to meet you!" Xion declared. Well, Roxas definitely understood how he felt when he saw Xion standing outside so he was definitely able to imagine Xion's internal reaction, probably the same as his. However, Roxas didn't mind it at all. Not when his high school lover was sitting in front of him, smiling ever so gently at him.

"Well, I can definitely imagine." Roxas chuckled, grinning widely, as he stared deeply into her eyes. Sora shifted, shuffling around the seat. Roxas spared his cousin a glance, wondering why the hell Sora kept moving around. As soon as Roxas locked eyes with Sora, the brunet flashed him a suggestive look, winking towards Xion. Roxas only huffed in reply, rolling his eyes as he turned back to Xion.

Never mind, Sora was definitely a moron. Roxas didn't need Sora to say anything for him to understand the hint.

After that, Roxas resumed talking to Xion, listening as she told him with wide, enthusiastic eyes about her new life and all the exciting memories she made so far. Roxas could feel nostalgia kicking in the moment Xion brought up all his high school buddies, mentioning all their current occupations or how close she's gotten to them. As Roxas followed along, he found himself in disbelief at Xion's descriptions of a few people. The blond could almost say he was seeing them in a new light.

The one that had his mind boggled the most was what Xion was telling him about Hayner. Apparently, Hayner was now part of the police force, which was absolutely jaw-dropping to Roxas. Justice and Hayner did not go well together. Well, it was more of an assumption Roxas was making, especially from the way he remembered Hayner from back then. Hayner was always the one to get into fights and he never did anything to stop a fight from happening. So, imagining Hayner doing some good cop duty was similar to believing that pigs actually fly. Nevertheless, Roxas didn't believe it.

Xion kept talking, telling Roxas about how far his friends had succeeded in life. Roxas just sent a small smile at that, feeling glad that his old pals had gone down a good road. Though, Roxas couldn't help but timidly look down at himself, thinking that he didn't really go far in life since school ended nor did he decided to further his career path in college. Roxas knew he had always been insecure about his life after he decided to move out of his parent's house. He had no money, no friends and no good hygienic skills. He just failed in life...

Roxas could tell Sora was starting to feel weary from not talking. The brunet was silent the whole time, while Roxas nodded along, murmuring back responses to the raven-haired girl. Roxas bet Sora wasn't even listening to their conversation. The whole time, for twenty minutes, Sora kept darting his eyes around the restaurant, probably trying to find something more interesting to focus on but Roxas wasn't really paying attention to his cousin. At one point, Roxas could feel Sora shuffling around uncomfortably, his face growing unsettled while his eyes went sharp. However, Roxas still disregarded his cousin's behavior in favor for Xion's bright smile.

After a while, Xion was yawning, staring out of the window. Roxas followed Xion's gaze, noticing how dark the streets had became. The only thing that was illuminating the streets were either the bright pole lights or the beaming stores placed down the road. Roxas could feel exhaustion rolling over him, triggered from Xion's loud yawn, so he let out a soft yawn as well. Then, Xion was standing up, smiling tiredly at him.

"I really need to use the restroom right now. So, please excuse me. Also, I think I should start driving back to my house since there's a long day at work tomorrow. Is that alright with you, Roxas?" Xion asked, blinking at him. At the question, Roxas started to nod slowly in response. Xion only smiled at him before disappearing towards the back of the place.

Then, Roxas leaned back into his seat, as a long yawn was released, before sparing Sora a look. Sora was a little tense, while his sky blue appeared to be in a daze. To Roxas, it looked like the brunet was deep in a trance or something. Roxas frowned softly, as his hand flew to Sora's face, snapping repeatedly at him. Instantly, Sora started blinking at the snapping hand and Sora was quick to flash Roxas a huge grin. Roxas had no time to question Sora's odd behavior since Sora was the first to start talking.

"So, did you like my surprise?" Sora asked, smiling smugly as if he already knew how much of an impact Xion's appearance had on Roxas. At Sora's pleased face, Roxas couldn't help but pull out a begrudging frown. However, despite the spiteful scowl, Roxas felt himself redden in embarrassment and nodded. After Roxas's resigned answer, Sora's superior grin became more sincere and there was a gentle gleam in his eyes as he murmured a satisfied "good."

"Though, this doesn't mean anything for you, Sora..." Roxas grumbled, refusing to believe he was pouting at the brunet. "Because you're still an idiot..." Sora let out a sad pout, his puppy dog face becoming intense. Roxas rolled his eyes at his cousin's face, scoffing a little. "Pftt, but it's okay since you're my idiot. My stupid, amazing idiot of a cousin." Sora let out a beam at the words, before winking at the blond.

"Great! I'm happy to be yours, Roxas!" Sora exclaimed, grinning his wide, stupid smile. Roxas arched an eyebrow, wondering if he should start regretting the fact that he just sorta complimented his cousin. Then, Sora leaned towards Roxas's direction, before whispering, "So, when are you going to get back together with Xion? Or more like when are going to "do it" with her?" At Sora's quiet suggestive words, Roxas felt his eyes grow wide in horror and feeling something similar to "what the fuck?" showing up on his face.

"What the hell are you spouting, Sora!?" Roxas hissed at his cousin, narrowing his eyes in irritation. Sora only shrugged his shoulders, innocently staring up at him. "I just met her for the first time in _years_ just today! She **_was_ **my girlfriend! It sure as hell doesn't mean I have the right to_** bone**_ her!? Jesus, what the fuck?!" Sometimes, Sora annoyed him to pieces with the amount of stupidity that existed in him.

"But you still like her! Gosh, tone down the profanity!" Sora argued "I just thought that maybe there was a chance you guys can get back together since you really liked her back then!" Roxas scoffed at Sora's response.

"Sora," Roxas replied dully, lips drawn in a tight line. "Xion _**has **_a boyfriend. There is no way she's ever going to decide to cheat on him and even if she did, I would refuse because there is no way in hell I could do anything. I wouldn't _**want **_to do anything, especially with Hayner as her boyfriend. I would never do anything to ruin their relationship! Seriously, what the heck are you thinking?! Sora, you're really-" Roxas ranted, words growing more irritated but before Roxas could continue with his rambling, Sora interrupted.

"OKAY! Okay, I get it! Just _please _stop yelling! People are staring..." Sora wailed, waving his hands, trying to calm his angry red-faced cousin. Roxas took a huge, raggedy intake of air, glaring at Sora, who had a sheepish smile on his face. Then, Sora took a glance around the place, looking for anyone who was paying attention to their conversation. However, for some odd, sudden reason, Sora just started to freeze, before glancing back at Roxas hastily with wide eyes. Roxas only raised his eyebrows at the strange action.

"What are you doing, Sora?" Roxas questioned, frowning at Sora's uneasy face. The brunet only shook his head, frowning as well while he nervously scratched his head. Roxas only stared at Sora strangely. He had never seen such a weird expression on Sora's face, especially one as anxious as this.

"Umm," Sora started quietly, fumbling with his hands. "It's just...- Did you know I wasn't really listening to you guys awhile ago?" Roxas only blinked at the peculiar question. Roxas actually _did _noticed Sora blanking out in the middle of his conversation with Xion but he didn't exactly cared about it at the moment. Plus, the only thing Sora did was look around the restaurant briefly.

"Yeah, I noticed that. Weren't you just staring around the place? Gosh, pay attention next time!" Roxas grumbled, scowling at his cousin. Sora sent him an apologetic smile, though it appeared a bit strained. Now, Roxas was definitely feeling curious about Sora's unusual attitude. Seriously, what the hell is up with Sora? His cousin would never look this disturbed unless he was watching a horror movie of some sort.

"It's just when you and Xion were talking, I noticed this person staring at us. It just had me a little creeped out..." Sora whispered, gripping Roxas's arm tightly. Roxas sent Sora a blank stare. Honestly, was that really what terrified Sora? Just a person looking at them? Sometimes, Sora is just too paranoid for his own good.. Roxas rolled his eyes before placing an attempt to peek around the restaurant. However, his effort was halted by Sora squeezing his arm tighter, along with a soft whine. "Don't look Roxas! I'm scared he might still be looking!"

"Sora," Roxas muttered, gently removing the harsh grip on his arm. "You're probably making a big deal! People will always stare and it doesn't really matter where you go. There's no reason to be such a scaredy-cat!" Though despite Roxas's reasoning, Sora's terrified expression did not fade, instead it intensified. Sora widened his eyes as he shook his head rapidly.

"Nuh uh! Roxas, the way this guy was looking at us was really, really weird. It was so freaky! If anything, **_you_** should be the one scared! I think he was staring at you the most!" Sora quietly exclaimed, gawking at Roxas with horrified eyes. Roxas only raised his eyebrows at the statement. Someone was watching him? Was that suppose to be flattering? Well, from the way Sora was describing it, he should probably be feeling more disturbed than his cousin.

"Huh? Someone was-" However, Roxas was interrupted by Xion's return from the women's bathroom. As soon as Xion appeared, Roxas placed on a huge smile, temporarily forgetting about his previous talk. Xion smiled as well, shuffling her bag a little.

"So, I'm about to head out! It was so nice to see you again Roxas! I missed you so much!" Xion warmly stated, smiling brightly at the blond. Roxas felt himself blush a little, rubbing his head a little, before nodding. He couldn't help but stand up as well, wanting to walk his old friend out of the restaurant.

"Is it okay for me to walk you out? I mean I really don't want to say goodbye.." Roxas admitted shyly, smiling a little. Xion only laughed a little before nodding as well. Then, Roxas was standing, leading Xion out of the restaurant while opening the doors for her like a gentleman. Just as he was about leave, Roxas yelled out to Sora. "Sora, I'll only be out for a minute! Then, may you please take me home!?" At the brisk nod he received, Roxas closed the door, before moving alongside with Xion, breathing in the freezing weather. He walked her to the car she owned and awkwardly stood there, not knowing what to say as she unlocked her car with a beep. Though, she helped him a little as she turned to him with a smile.

"So..." Xion whispered.

"So, I guess this is a goodbye.." Roxas whispered back, shivering a little under the cold. Xion only smiled sadly at him, shifting her attention to the floor, appearing to be thinking.

"But I can come back! I mean I already know where this place is so maybe I can visit you everyday! Well, the days you're working at least. Then, we could catch up or something." Xion suggested, opening her car door. Roxas widened his eyes in hope, mouth gape open at the idea. He could feel his heart and mind screaming in satisfaction, happy to hear such an awesome proposal. Then, before Roxas knew it, he was nodding hastily, a huge grin on his face.

"Yeah, yeah! That sounds really good, Xion! I would really like that!" Roxas gasped out, as a joyful warmth decided to spread throughout his body. Xion nodded, before smiling. Then, she stuffed herself in the driver's seat, turning on her car. Roxas watched silently as she cranked up the heat, along with the radio, adjusting the car the way she preferred it before turning to him.

"Well, I'll be going now! If you need my number, ask Sora. I'm pretty sure he has it in there somewhere." Xion told him, as Roxas nodded. Then, she was driving away while Roxas waved slowly at the retreating black vehicle. Roxas let out a soft sigh, blinking at the bright lights of the stores before dragging himself back into the old restaurant. Sora was still seated in his seat, tapping the table, with a unsettled frown on his face. Roxas only stared for a second before addressing his cousin, who abruptly glanced at him with a wide stare.

"So, you ready to leave?" At the question, Sora hastily stood up before stumbling out of the restaurant, mumbling an "_about time_." Roxas raised an eyebrow at the action, guessing that Sora was still feeling anxious from whoever was staring at them before. However, Roxas wasn't too worried about it. Then, after a little of walking, they were in the car, raising the car's heat. After that, Sora blasted on the radio, humming along to it. Other than that, it was completely silent the whole ride which was quick to help Roxas drift off.

However, as Roxas dozed off, he couldn't help the goofy smile that appeared on his face.

* * *

Following that certain day, Xion definitely kept her promise and came back to visit everyday. Roxas was always anticipating her appearance with a huge grin on his face and when she did show up, Roxas's bright smile covered at least half his face. Proudly, Roxas noticed that Xion's face was a complete reflection as his. Unfortunately, Roxas wasn't allowed to talk to Xion until after his shift but he was glad that Xion understood and would usually sit in a nearby booth, waiting until he was done for the day. Then, they would talk for what seemed like hours. Roxas would laugh and Xion would giggle at the endless jokes they both spewed out. To Roxas, it felt like their old relationship was coming back, even if it was a little slow.

Roxas would usually tell Sora all about their conversations whenever he was there to pick him up. Sora would always place on a huge smile, before joking with Roxas about dating her. Though the moment when the subject was brought up, Roxas would immediately flash Sora a glower, his cheerful mood dampened from Sora's teasing. Then, Sora would apologize sheepishly, telling the irritated blond he was joking but Roxas would still turn away in displeasure, grumbling angrily at the brunet. There was no chance for Roxas to ever date Xion.

Besides the teasing, Roxas noticed Sora was _**still **_feeling uneasy about the other day. Even though Sora would flash his usual wink or flirtatious smile, there were always a few occasional twitches or anxious glances around the place. Roxas would scoff at the paranoid behavior, telling Sora to just "cool it." There was no reason to feel scared about anyone. If they ever needed help from some bad man, there were literally people surrounding the whole place, ready to pummel their fists into someone. Though, Roxas did have to admit he never caught sight of the person Sora was so worried about so he couldn't really understand the nerves Sora was feeling.

But besides that, Roxas had to guess that life was going well for the both of them.

After a few days, Roxas hardly noticed when all the flowers and gifts started to disappear from his doorstep. However, he _did _notice a familiar looking letter in his pile of mail. It was the pink letter Roxas was **so **used to seeing and somehow, it magically popped up in his mail since the morning. Roxas only shrugged at it, reaching to grab for it, before ripping it open. Roxas knew what he was expecting when he unfolded to letter. He was expecting girly pink hearts to be dribbled all over the paper, along with some nice girly handwriting. He was expecting a flood of compliments to be written, praising his good looks, nice smile or cute personality.

However, what he expected did not happen.

First off, the thing that caught his eye was the bright red ink that looked like blood on the paper. The words weren't even nicely scribbled but they were written with such force that it had punctured a few holes in the letter. There weren't even any cute scribbled hearts on the paper at all! There were a lot of angry scribbling and it sort of made Roxas anxious. Didn't the other letters looked like it was done by some middle school girl? This made him want to toss the letter into the trash can and forget about the letter entirely. But Roxas was curious... Why was this letter so different from the others? What made the person decide to change how they wrote their letter?

So, Roxas started to read...

_Roxas,_

_If you keep deciding to talk to that fucking blue-eyed bitch, I won't hesitate to follow her home and stab her guts out. Tell her to stop meeting you._

That was the only thing written on the whole paper. It was short but it had Roxas frowning, confused. Wait, did they just threatened him? Roxas didn't know whether to shrug it off or take it seriously. But wait... Wouldn't that mean someone was watching him everyday? Alarm was starting to rise up but Roxas bit back any hysteria that was trying to find it's way out. After a moment of silent panicking, Roxas decided it was probably best to ignore the whole situation. It was most likely a joke, something not to be taken seriously.

Though, Roxas couldn't help but nervously glance back as he trailed his way back inside his bedroom.

* * *

**March 12- Day 27**

* * *

"Xion, what happened? Why aren't you coming by anymore?" Even though it had only been a week and a half since Xion started coming to the restaurant, Roxas couldn't help but anticipate her visits. After the fifth visit, she just stopped coming. Roxas only brushed it off, thinking she was busy that certain day but when she didn't appear the next day, Roxas started to feel anxious. His mind trailed back to that threatening letter but denial kept pushing the subject out of his head.

Instead, Roxas tried to convince himself that she must've been really busy at work these days. Although Roxas knew better than to try and rekindle the same relationship the two had in high school, that their relationship couldn't ever be the same. But that didn't mean they weren't allowed to be the best of friends. So here he was, calling her with his old phone, while seated on his couch.

"Roxas..." Xion mumbled lowly, her bleak voice making Roxas grip his phone harder. Xion sounded exhausted, grim and _fearful. _The tone in her voice made Roxas tense up, furrowing his eyebrows in concern. He never heard Xion sound so... _so _**gloomy**. Was that even the word for it? Maybe it sounded more uneasy to Roxas than gloomy. However, whatever it was, it had Roxas dreading Xion's next words, hoping that it wasn't what he feared.

"Yeah, is something wrong?" Roxas rushed out worriedly, biting his lip nervously. Why wasn't Xion saying anything? She kept taking these long pauses, her shaky breathing clear. "Did I _do _something...?" Roxas didn't mean to blurt his words out like that, desperate and needy but Xion just wasn't replying back to him. He was starting to think that maybe he did something wrong while he was talking to Xion this whole week. However, something in his mind told him it wasn't that.

"No, you didn't do _anything_!" Xion breathed out. Roxas let out a relieved sigh, allowing his shoulders to relax just slightly. "Roxas, it's just..." Xion's voice began to tremble, her anxiety becoming clear. Then, it went dead quiet. It was like Xion had stopped breathing out of fear and Roxas started to frown, troubled by the eerie silence on the other line.

"Xion, are you alright?" Roxas whispered, swallowing a huge lump stuck in his throat. Xion's edgy behavior was starting to bother him a little too much. It was like he was waiting to hear a confirmation on his mother's death or something.

"Roxas..." Xion croaked out. "The other night... when I was leaving the restaurant..." Another pause. "Someone followed me home..." Roxas felt his heart grow heavy in horror, while his eyes widened.

"What...?" Roxas questioned quietly, as his breathing began to quicken just a little. Why would anyone want to stalk Xion? Did they rob her? There were plenty of scenarios where Roxas was followed home, only to have all his valuable items stolen from him. Roxas felt his chest tightening in alarm, as his frown grew deeper. Then, he softly mumbled, "Were you hurt? They didn't take anything from you, right?"

"No..." Xion mumbled, then she took a deep breath. "But I don't know what to do, Roxas! I'm not actually sure if I should be telling you this!" Roxas bit his lip, not knowing what to say as Xion started to quicken her breathing in panic. The both of them stopped talking, as the air became awkward with silence. Xion sounded close to tears.

"Did you tell anyone else? Did you tell Hayner!?" Roxas asked. If Xion mentioned it to Hayner, then he would've definitely done something about it. There was no way Hayner would allow Xion to start panicking like this. Well, at least, Roxas wouldn't have let it happened. Plus, Hayner was part of the police force! There was absolutely no reason for Xion not to mention it!

"No, I haven't told anyone yet! Except for you..." Xion mumbled, voice tight in terror. Roxas stared worriedly into blank space, staying silent before he managed to spit out a few words.

"What, why would you do that? Wait, why are you telling me then!?" Roxas frowned, wondering why the hell she hadn't told anyone yet. He didn't know how long Xion kept quiet but it was obvious this was too big of a threat to keep hidden. Xion needed to tell the cops or else a situation like this might happen again. Roxas found himself internally groaning at Xion, knowing she could've _told _Hayner about this. Then maybe, she would get the protection she needed.

"Because I think you need to know this. Like I said, when I was driving home, someone followed me... Then, when I was about to enter my house, someone grabbed me..." Xion whispered. Roxas gritted his teeth together, anger starting to swell up. Why the hell would anyone decide to ever do that to Xion? Roxas felt like slamming his fists into the wall, more preferably into the person who decided to do all this.

"Did they _**hurt** _you?" Roxas demanded urgently, narrowing his eyes.

"He.. He..." Xion stuttered, choking up. Roxas furiously frowned at Xion's trembling voice, as his chest started to ache painfully. "He grabbed my mouth the moment I was about to walk in and then he dragged me inside my house and locked the door... I-I c-couldn't even scream for help! Then, he- he- threatened me..." Xion paused for a few seconds, stopping to take a breath, before moaning out. "He t-told me to stop visiting the restaurant... He told me to stop meeting **_you, _**Roxas! He _**knew **_you!"

"What?!" Roxas choked out, his voice becoming strangled with shock. His mind was starting to go blank, as his eyes widened in horror. However, Xion paid no heed to this as she continued on with her story, voice dripping with fear.

"The w-weird part was that his voice sounded so familiar but I couldn't even look at him! He had me pinned against the wall and I was so scared! I-I thought I was going to die!" Xion cried out, as her breathing became shaky. "T-then he took my wallet and cut a piece of my hair! W-why the h-hell does he even want my hair!? B-before he left, he t-told me not to tell the cops or e-else he'll kill me!" Roxas only stood there, staring at his dingy wall with distress. This must've meant that they weren't joking. Whoever the hell sent that letter was being serious. Suddenly, Roxas felt nauseated and the urge to throw up right there in his living room was huge.

"..." Roxas didn't know what to say, nor did he know any words that could've comfort Xion from her panic.

"I'm s-sorry, Roxas! I-I don't think I can go back to the r-restaurant now... B-Bye" Then, just like that, Xion hanged up. Roxas only gasped out his response a little too late.

"Xion, w-wait!" But the line was dead... Roxas pulled the phone away from his ear, staring at the bright phone screen blankly, before groaning out.

Hastily, Roxas stood up, stumbling into his kitchen as he prepared himself to call Xion again. Roxas _needed _answers and most of all, he _needed _Xion to be alright. Even if Xion didn't want help, Roxas knew for sure that calling the cops was the best plan for now. Xion would get the protection she needed if she just called the cops, or better yet, Hayner. Roxas didn't care that Hayner was Xion's boyfriend, even if a little jealousy was swelling up inside, because Hayner would definitely offer Xion protection.

Just when Roxas was about to dial in Xion's number again, a familiar pink letter caught his eye. Roxas blinked a little, forgetting about his phone call for a brief second. Then, Roxas slowly placed his phone down on the counter, before walking to his table cautiously. As he grabbed for the pink letter, Roxas couldn't help but notice how it felt a bit heavier in his hands or how the mail looked a bit lumpy.

Roxas frowned, feeling a little unnerved. He was getting bad vibes from the innocent pink letter. Roxas didn't know whether to open it or leave it, recalling the last letter he received wasn't at all friendly. However, Roxas decided to rip the pink mail open. He nervously swallowed as he reached his hand in the mail and pulled it out. The moment he grabbed for the letter, something fell to the ground, thumping softly.

Startled, Roxas slowly moved his eyes downwards. Then, he caught sight of it... Roxas started to grow horrified, as his heart started to race in terror. There was **_black_ **hair on the ground and it didn't take long for Roxas to figure out who it originally came from. Besides the black strands of hair, there was a certain someone's driver license with a smiling face on it. Right away, Roxas _knew _it all belonged to Xion..

It made the small, innocent letter appear menacing in his hands. Hands shaking in fear, Roxas flipped the card open, finding the similar bloody red ink being used and a single sentence.

_\- Now didn't I tell you to stop seeing her?_

* * *

**A/N: **Sorry for the long wait and maybe the somewhat boring chapter! Honestly, the only good thing I could say about this chapter is the fact that it's the longest one I ever typed before so yay! :D This was so, so long. There is also a HUUUUUUUGE leap in time...

Hopefully, this chapter was decent. Oh and by the way, this will probably be Xion's last appearance for a while. Also, I just noticed I had Roxas say it was six months of this in the beginning so I guess about a total of 180 days of this story. So, I'll probably skip a few days because I feel like this story might become a bit repetitive if I did every single day of the week. Another thing is that I might change POV's sometime later in the story, more particularly with Axel because why not? Ya gotta switch it up sometime. Plus, it'll probably be interesting to see how he started.

I didn't really read over this but I did sort of skimmed over this so I'm really sorry if there are some spelling errors or idk, it doesn't make sense because sometimes I do that.

_Reviewee_: Honestly, I've never worked in a fast-food restaurant so a lot of these stuff I'm writing about might be inaccurate. Heh.. But yeah, Axel is just creepy. :)


	4. Chapter 4: Day 31-43

**Chapter 4**

* * *

As promised, Xion stopped visiting him. It was hard at first, knowing that his best friend had left him but Roxas thought it was only fair. He had left her once too, back when he graduated high school. Nobody had expected it, especially since Roxas wasn't the one to make choices without explaining himself. However, what his friends didn't know was that the decision was made on an impulse. It was the spur-of-the-moment type of situation, with Roxas hastily shoving all his wrinkled clothes and prized possessions into some olive-colored suitcase. Then, he left his apartment complex, the one he shared with his parents, and he never looked back once. The only person he bothered to contact was Sora, the only person other than Xion who was so close to him.

But Xion didn't leave him without any thought. Instead, she was **_threatened _**not to associate with Roxas anymore. It was either disappear from Roxas's life or be assassinated by some crazed psychopath. Even though it stung a little to have Xion gone, it was probably a smart choice for her to avoid Roxas. Roxas didn't want any danger coming across Xion and he definitely didn't want it to be his fault.

Despite all that, Xion told Roxas that she was being blackmailed by someone that sounded _familiar_, by a **_man, _**and apparently he knew Roxas. That alone alarmed Roxas, made his blue eyes widen so huge in panic until they threatened to fall out of his eye sockets. But then, _that _letter... When he read **_that _**letter, he was scared _shitless._ With his heart leaping all the way up into his mouth, Roxas was in cold sweat, gaping at the letter that was _still _in his shaking hands.

Roxas had shaken his head frantically, trying to deny what he was seeing, and ripped the paper to shreds. He didn't care if he was making a mess in his apartment because it was already a pig's den, a clutter of junk on the floors. Dragging his heavy legs to the couch, Roxas dropped his body onto the lumpy couch and just stared up at the ceiling in a daze, still startled by the revelation. What terrified Roxas wasn't that some demented person followed Xion home, nor was it the fact that they were insane enough to cut off a piece of her hair.

No, what scared Roxas the most was that the person initiating all this was a **_guy. _**It was impossible for Roxas to deny that simple factor, especially with the letter and Xion's phone call. Roxas knew he couldn't pass it off as a coincidence, no matter how much he wanted to ignore it. Xion _told _him that the person was a man and Roxas always believed Xion.

That would mean that his little "secret admirer" was some sick bastard. Throughout the whole month, Roxas had always imagined the person behind all the love letters was a girl, probably some random giggling teenager who thought Roxas was a decent-looking male. However, in reality, it was a guy behind those girly letters. It was odd, realizing that all his letters were written by a male. Soft, delicate writing, feminine colors, cutely drawn hearts and sugar-coated compliments all pointed to a girl. None of the gifts made Roxas assume they belonged to some guy, even though a girl sending a guy flowers might've been a bit strange when it should've been the exact opposite.

When the letters started threatening him about Xion, Roxas did notice the angry handwriting which definitely appeared as if it had been written by a guy. Red, harsh messy handwriting and it also got straight to the point. No sugarcoating words or drawn hearts for the young blond at all. Instead, it was just a very mean letter written to scare him. All Roxas remembered was that he arched an eyebrow in confusion, acting as if he wasn't "terrified" at all when he crumpled the paper up and tossed it in the garbage. Maybe if he was acting a bit more cautious, maybe if he actually bothered telling Xion what happened, she would've been safe from any danger.

But now, it was too late and Roxas was growing more and more aware that the person who has been telling him he was utter perfection was a damn _guy_. And not just any normal dude, fuck no because it couldn't have been that_ easy_, instead it was some mental case that decided to break into his _ex_-girlfriend's house and terrorize her until she was too scared to tell anyone anything. The thought of it upset and panicked Roxas... a lot.

Roxas wasn't gay and the current problem was definitely not going to change his mind. He liked girls and only girls- which meant that no man, no matter how fucking hot, was going to alter his decision any time soon. He didn't like girls for their boobs or big butt or whatever reason most people adored them for. Instead, Roxas loved how they always listened and they weren't so insensitive about it, more particularly Xion but now, she wasn't coming back.

Cleaning the ripped paper and the tuffs of black hair on the floor, Roxas realized that Xion's driver license was still lying on the floor. Picking the card up, Roxas groaned when he realized a certain thing.

He needed to get this back to Xion somehow... which meant he was going to confront her.

* * *

**March 16- Day 31**

* * *

Today was the day Roxas was planning to return Xion's driver license. Roxas already discussed his situation with Sora, although he left out some explicit details. Well honestly, he basically just lied to Sora, telling his cousin that Xion had left her driver license at the restaurant and that he needed to return it. Sora only frowned, before suggesting he could return it since they work in the same building. But Roxas insisted, shaking his head at the offer, telling Sora that he needed to be the one to return her driver license.

Sora only narrowed his eyes in suspicion, before smiling and telling Roxas he understood. Roxas just grumbled under his breath, informing Sora it wasn't like _that. _So after that discussion, Sora appointed a meeting between the two of them on a Sunday which was today. Sora took off the day, notifying Roxas that he was able to drive him to the café where he set up the meeting. Roxas took the offer, thanking Sora.

So here Roxas was, sitting in Sora's passenger seat, nervously tapping his foot. Sora had turn the radio up, singing along to some Taylor Swift song, which was incredibly grating to listen to. The café was at least thirty minutes away from his apartment but it was closer to where Sora and Xion were currently living. It was closer to where his parents lived and he actually remembered the café. Roxas and his other friends were always buying drinks and spending time together in the shop, except for Xion because she didn't like coffee. So Roxas a bit surprised when Sora told him the place they were going to be meeting at.

_"_**Twilight Café**_"_ looked the same as it did a few years ago when they finally pulled up in the parking lot. Roxas slammed the door and walked towards Sora's side of the car, knocking on the window. Sora rolled down the windows, turning down the music so he could hear Roxas's words.

"I appreciate you driving me here, Sora." Roxas thanked, watching Sora grin at him.

"No problem, just call me when you're finished chatting and stuff. I'm assuming you'll be here for a while unless you want to just hand Xion her license and drive back. But if not, I'll be down the street at Riku's house." Sora stated, bobbing his head to the soft music. Roxas only rolled his eyes at the display, before glancing around him. Everything looked exactly the same from when he was a child, especially the old fashioned telephone booth next to the café.

"It's fine, you can go spend some time with Riku. I have something to talk about with Xion." Roxas uttered, feeling nostalgia kick in the moment he turned to face the café, the place where he hanged out with his friends on a few occasions. "So, does Riku live in the same house after all these years?" In the back of his head, Roxas remembered that Riku lived in this small house with his parents in this tiny neighborhood just five minutes away. Sora used to take him there when they were in high school to talk about stuff or play some games. But Roxas always had a feeling that Riku never really appreciated his company, especially when they were in school. They were so many embarrassing moments where they walked by each other and only spared each other awkward glances before parting ways.

"Yeah he does and his room looks exactly the same. Haha, he actually still has his action figures lying on his desk. Imagine how weird that would be to explain whenever he brings a lady friend home." Sora grinned, clearly amused at the thought of it. Roxas chuckled, finding it hard to visualize Riku, his cousin's mysterious friend, owning childish toys. "Well, have fun."

"Yeah, you too." Roxas responded, as he turned around and started walking towards the café. Feeling anxious, Roxas entered the shop, hearing a ding resonate throughout the shop. Glancing around the familiar walls, Roxas noticed that there were at least twenty people in the shop, which was different from the five to ten customers he was used to. Finding no raven-haired girl from where he was standing, Roxas wandered further into the shop before deeming Xion wasn't there yet. So he took a booth in the isolated corner of the café.

Roxas couldn't help but feel nervous, especially from the last conversation he had with Xion. The only major reason why he wanted to discuss some things with Xion is because he wanted to confirm what she experienced. Also, Roxas wanted Xion not to be scared of any danger befalling her. He wanted to tell her that she was going to be safe, that there was noting to be concerned about. However, Roxas couldn't really confirm that at all.

Time was passing by quickly and Roxas kept glancing at his phone, worried that she might've forgotten. The time Sora set was five o' clock but it was now twenty minutes past five. Roxas had to wonder if Sora mixed up times or if he gave Xion the wrong café name. Honestly, Roxas wouldn't have been very surprised if that was the case.

Just when Roxas was starting to get impatient and call Sora to just take him home, someone uttered his name but it wasn't Xion's soft voice. Instead, it was very low and right away, Roxas knew it belonged to a guy. Startled, Roxas glanced up to find a man with hazel eyes, dressed as an officer. Roxas only stared for a few seconds before his brain made the connection. Then, he bolted up from his seat in shock, eyes just gaping at the view.

"Hayner..." Roxas gasped out, as his heart started to race at the sight of someone so familiar from his past. Hayner only regarded him with an unwelcoming gleam in his eyes, a stiff frown on his face and a formal nod before sliding into the booth across from Roxas. It was a huge difference from how Roxas remembered Hayner and there was definitely a lot of names to remember Hayner by. Fiery. Reckless. Bold. Hayner was usually that certain kid who was always trying to find some adventure in their boring lives. He was the one to spice up the dull parties with a huge grin and a huge bottle of beer.

But this Hayner, who was acting so cold towards him, was so different from what he was used to. Maybe this was just a sign that Hayner was still mad at him for bailing all those years ago. It made Roxas more nervous than before and a bit more terrified to be currently dealing with someone who used to be close to him. Then, when Hayner mumbled his name again, Roxas felt like dashing out of the café because he was starting to feel guilty.

"Roxas... So, how's life been?" Hayner questioned, sounding a bit too sour as he spitted out his words. Roxas bit his lip nervously, taking a shaky breath in. There was so many ways Roxas could've answered Hayner. He could've answered it sarcastically with a_ "fucking faaaantastic,"_ just like he used to back in the day_, _his words mocking. Then, Hayner would punch him in the shoulder with a jolly laugh, rolling his eyes at the sardonic smile on the blond's face. After that, Roxas would be laughing along, his sharp, bitter smile turning genuine because he wasn't really the one to act snide, even on bad days. Or he could answer the question with a polite smile and a fake response, telling Hayner how well life has been turning out for him. Even though it really wasn't with how horrible his life has been so far.

"Life's been okay." Roxas answered, turning his eyes away from Hayner, facing the window, faking interest in the old building that was blocking most of the view. Hayner scoffed and then there was silence, awkward and unpleasant. Roxas heard Hayner grumble quietly to himself before calling a waitress to their table, deciding to buy a drink. Hayner whispered his order, demanding a macchiato. The woman scribbled down the order and then she asked Hayner if he wanted anything else. Roxas was surprised and whipped his head to stare at Hayner when he heard him ordering a peppermint hot chocolate, which was one of Roxas's all time favorites. When the waitress walked away, Roxas was quick to hoarsely whisper at Hayner, "I can't really pay for that. I didn't bring any money..."

"My treat.." Hayner grumbled out and Roxas tried opening his mouth to protest but then he saw the frown on Hayner's face and decided to shut up. It wasn't like he had any money to give Hayner nor did he felt like calling Sora for money to pay his friend back. Sora was already working too hard and Roxas would feel bad if he ended up taking money from his cousin.

"Alrighty then..." Roxas mumbled, once again diverting his attention away from Hayner. It wasn't until the drinks arrived that Roxas bothered talking to Hayner. "So, I'm guessing Xion was the one to tell you I was gonna be here?" Even though Roxas already knew the answer, he wanted Hayner to confirm it. However, Hayner stayed silent, taking large gulps of his macchiato while Roxas took small, little sips of his peppermint hot chocolate, keeping his eyes locked on Hayner, waiting for an answer.

"Yeah, she did say someone arranged a meeting at this particular café the other day and when I asked who, she didn't bother telling me.." Hayner quietly said, slowly narrowing his eyes at Roxas. "I didn't exactly find out who until this morning... Xion told me it was you and really, I didn't believe her at all. Honestly, why would someone who left us in high school bother contacting us at all? But she kept begging me to go visit you in her place and told me to tell you that she couldn't make it and that she was sorry. Hell, if it weren't for Xion, I wouldn't even be here right now." Hayner was furrowing his eyebrows together, his lips in a tight frown, slightly glaring at the blond who was taking sips from his cup. Roxas only pursed his lips in discomfort, shuffling around uneasily as Hayner stared daggers into him.

"I just needed to discuss something important with Xion, that's why I decided to meet her here. Um- and well, it wasn't like I was never planning to come back because I knew eventually that I had to... face everything again." Roxas softly responded, unable to meet Hayner's piercing gaze.

"And when were you planning to do that? A hundred years from now?" Hayner scoffed, rolling his eyes at the statement. Roxas shook his head in reply, as he took a huge mouthful of his hot chocolate, relishing the sweet and sugary taste of his drink. Roxas knew Hayner didn't believe him and even if Hayner was scorning him in a crude way, he was making a good point. Roxas probably wasn't making any preparations to ever come back to his hometown in a long, long time. Hayner took Roxas's silence as a _yes_ and scowled bitterly.

"I-I.." Roxas started but then stopped, deciding to take on another subject, trying to make the mood less tense. "So, I heard that you were an officer now? You look good in a uniform.. I bet you're helping enforce the law now, right? Quite amazing of you, Hayner, it was really unexpected..." Hayner's mouth twitched, as if he was forcing down a proud smile. But in the end, Hayner failed and a huge grin overcame him, looking entirely smug as he smirked at Roxas. Roxas relaxed a little, feeling a bit better at the display of pure delight. Hayner was easier to deal when he was in a good mood.

"Yeah, I guess it surprised everyone but they knew the reason why I chose the job. Remember how I loved to start fights in high school? Well, a few months after you disappeared, I was looking for a job and I bumped into this drunk guy. I started a fight with him, not that I remember what it was about but whatever. Turns out the guy had a knife on him and stabbed me in the gut the moment I socked a fist into his mouth." Hayner grumbled out, grimacing at the memory. Roxas scrunched his face, frowning worriedly at the thought of his friend being in danger. "Well, luckily for me, an officer was nearby and the moment I yelled, he came to investigate. The instant he found me on the ground bleeding, he fired a shot."

"Wow," Roxas whispered in awe, mouth gaped open. "I never knew that happened to you... Well, I'm glad you're safe now." Hayner suddenly frowned, snapping his head towards Roxas and narrowed his eyes.

"Of course, you wouldn't know... You weren't here for the last five years, remember?" Hayner interjected harshly, glaring softly at Roxas, who could avert his eyes away guiltily.

"Yeah, sorry..." Roxas mumbled, avoiding eye contact from his frustrated friend. It wasn't like Roxas had tried to remind Hayner about how he suddenly vanished. It was Hayner's fault for bringing it up.

"So, please do tell me," Hayner asked mockingly, a permanent scowl laying on his face. "Why did you arrange a meeting with Xion?" Hayner's face then turned more serious, his piercing eyes drilling their way inside of Roxas, who froze the tiniest bit. The blond hesitated, wondering if Hayner knew what happened to Xion and if he should even mention it to him. Who knew what Xion wanted him to say.

"I.. needed to return something to her." Roxas whispered. "The other day, someone followed her home..." Roxas watched Hayner cautiously, dark blue eyes narrowing slightly when he noticed the blank expression on his friend's face. "I'm not sure if she told you... but she was scared to death. The guy tried to hurt her, Hayner." Roxas felt a bit irked when Hayner's face remained in the same expressionless state as before. He at least expected Hayner to show the tiniest bit of concern. So, Roxas began to irritably growl out with a feral scowl, "Hey, are you even listening to me? I just told you-"

"Yeah, I heard you." Hayner mumbled distractingly, waving Roxas off with a mere flick of a wrist. "She told me the other night about what happened..." Roxas frowned, feeling a bit confused at the distant look on Hayner's face. Pursing his lips, Roxas decided to ask Hayner if he bothered to do anything.

"Well, did you do anything?" Roxas questioned. "You're a cop, right? I'm pretty sure what that guy did was probably illegal. Seriously, that was just fucked up. Xion didn't deserve that, especially getting her hair chopped off. Please tell me you did something, Hayner. You're her boyfriend for god's sake!" Roxas was starting to grow a bit disturbed by Hayner's impassive face. But then, Hayner started frowning, appearing to be troubled.

"I tried... but Xion wouldn't say anymore. Plus, there wasn't much evidence in the house." Hayner stated, eyebrows furrowed together in confusion. "The only thing I managed to get out of her was his appearance." Instantly, Roxas was perplexed, confusion swirling around in his blue orbs. From what Xion told him, he sort of thought Xion didn't even took a glance from the guy. "Apparently, he had a lot of bright red hair and I don't know, stunning green eyes? Then, the only thing she said was, 'Doesn't he sound familiar, Hayner? He sort of reminded me of someone we used to know!' That was pretty much the end of our conversation."

"Familiar?" Xion sort of said the same thing to him over the phone but he didn't really try to understand her words. He never heard of someone with bright red hair before. It must've been dyed... Hayner only frowned thoughtfully, before mumbling.

"He did sound familiar but I told her to ignore it. It'll probably never happen again... It was probably best to move on and pretend it never occurred." Roxas felt infuriated at Hayner's words, as he slammed his fists on the table, watching people peek in their direction curiously. Their eyes lingered a little too long for Roxas's taste but he decided to ignore it and growl at Hayner.

"What the hell do you mean '_ignore_?'" Roxas felt frustration kicking in, as he scowled at Hayner. People were definitely interested, probably wondering why there was someone yelling at a cop in their local coffee shop. "What if he comes and harms her again?!" Roxas was practically yelling right now in anger. Hayner only stared at him coldly, his frown turning ugly.

"Let me worry about Xion. She _is _my fiancé, unlike you... Don't act as if you're that important to her." Hayner scoffed, his frown turning into a triumph, bitter smirk. "I mean, you were only her boyfriend for one year." Roxas could feel his mouth drying up as his eyes widened in shock. If Roxas wasn't so surprised, he probably would've decided to pummel his fist into Hayner's face for that ugly statement.

"You're her... _fiancé_?" Roxas felt his face flushing, feeling the need to go stuff his face in a bucket of ice cold water and attempt to drown himself. Instead, he opted for licking his lips nervously, averting his eyes away from the sharp glare of a stiff Hayner. "She never told me she was getting married.. I-I never saw a ring on her finger." Roxas quietly mentioned, taking a glance at Hayner's hands and noticing the small ring adorning his ring finger.

"Why should it matter to you? Unless, you were planning to steal her away from me?" Hayner stared at him coldly, not looking amused at all. Roxas felt himself flinch away from the remark, and his tongue shriveled up as he wasn't able to reply back. Sure, Sora teased him about hooking up with Xion physically but he never allowed himself to humor his cousin's idiotic thoughts. Roxas only intended to stay friends with Xion so it stung... a _whole _lot when Hayner implied him wanting to get back together with Xion.

"No.. I would never... -I swear I would've never... I-I-I..." Roxas stuttered, not knowing what to say to _that_. He was literally lost for words.

"You know Xion missed you a whole bunch when you left. We all did.. But she missed you the most which was pretty much clear when all she did was cry for you every _single _day. She was depressed.." Hayner growled out, throwing his face into his hands in frustration.

"I didn't know..." Roxas whispered quietly, his heart beating quickly from the guilt he was feeling. Hayner looked stressed and very, _very _tired. Dark circles were under his eyes and he looked dazed.

"We all missed you. But you know what, eventually we all moved on. We decided that the best thing to do was to forget you and we did! So, don't come back now! We don't need you in our life _ever_ again!" Hayne spitted out, words slapping Roxas across the face and all Roxas could do was stare down at his drink with wide, bewildered eyes. "You understand?" Hayner growled out in that pretentious, gruff voice you'd expect to only hear from officers.

Sharply, Roxas nodded, not even daring a glance at Hayner.

That was it. There was nothing else to talk about. There was absolutely no point in trying to woo Hayner into coming back. Roxas wasn't stupid, he knew when he wasn't wanted or needed. So, all he needed to do was reach into his pocket and hand Hayner the driver license. Then, he'll be on his way. But why did Roxas feel too nervous to do so? Maybe it was because staring into his friend's eyes reminded him that he wasn't looking at Hayner's bright, joyous eyes. No, he was staring at a stranger... It was unwelcoming and reminded him nothing of his friend. Roxas bit his lip anxiously, before rising from his seat. Walking away from the table, Roxas threw Xion's driver license rather carelessly at Hayner, before leaving the coffee shop.

After he did so, Roxas leaned against the building, breathing deeply to himself. He closed his eyes in thought for a minute or two before deciding he should try to call Sora. Just as he was pulling out his phone, Hayner walked out, gripping Xion's license in one hand. Roxas paused scrolling his contacts list when Hayner locked eyes with him. Hayner scowled, walking past Roxas with a glare. Roxas tried to ignore the deep frown that was making it's way out but in the end, it slipped out.

"I hope you have fun living your sorry life." Hayner muttered. Roxas's left eye twitched in anger, before he yelled out to the hostile blond.

"What the hell is your problem!? How many times do I have to apologize before you even start treating me like a civilian? Seriously, Hayner, what the fuck happened to you? Are you having abandonment issues? Because if you are, you can just tell me and we'll fix this!" Roxas yelled out. He was just tired and he did not need Hayner's behavior to start screwing with him. Was a cop even allowed to treat someone like this? If not, Hayner was doing his job horribly.

"My problem is that you _left _us. Not only did you screw up your own life but you messed with ours! You've changed too! Heck, I don't know what the hell is wrong with you?! Maybe _you _were the one who hired that guy to go harass Xion?! What, did you get off on that!? It makes sense! Why else would you have Xion's license!?" Roxas could only widen his eyes at Hayner, as anger started to kick in. What preposterous accusations! Why the hell would he ever do that to Xion? But it's not like Roxas would ever be allowed to explain himself. Hayner probably would've just called him a faggot for trying to tell him he was receiving love letters from a guy.

Instead of explaining himself, Roxas decided to stride up to Hayner and punch him across the face harshly. Roxas didn't really know what he was doing but he was hoping it would've knocked some sense into Hayner. Maybe he was trying to reenact the old days whenever he was allowed to slap Hayner for saying the stupidest things. But all Roxas knew was that he probably fucked up badly. Because the old days were at least five years ago and this scene was now. Roxas should've known better than to ever smack an officer.

Because the next thing that happened frightened Roxas a lot. Instead of scowling moodily like the old days, Hayner opted to shoving Roxas against the brick wall and slamming his face against the hard, rough walls. Roxas let out a pained grunt, gritting his teeth together so hard it felt like he was about to chip off his teeth. Hayner was yelling obscenities into his ear, challenging him to do that again. Roxas felt his two hands being held together behind his back by Hayner and he could only groan in pain. Instantly, Roxas felt frustrated, as small tears prick his eyes but he willed it away. There was no way he was gonna cry over being manhandled by his friend. However, Roxas couldn't help but feel betrayed and hurt.

Hayner was treating him like a criminal. His _old _friend... acting as if he was a thug. Roxas didn't know what stung most, his aching, hurting body or the feeling of Hayner stabbing him from behind his back.

"Y-yeah, I won't hit you again. Just let go of me." Roxas gasped out and then he was released from the crushing grip Hayner had on him. They stared at each other for a moment. Roxas, who was holding his bleeding nose and Hayner, who was staring nonchalantly at Roxas. Gripping his nose tighter, Roxas turned away, not able to stare at his friend any longer, much less attempt to talk to him. Then, Hayner left, reaching his car and driving away.

Angrily, Roxas reached into his pockets, trying to find his phone, before realizing he dropped it when Hayner decided to attack him. Slightly horrified, Roxas grabbed his phone and cried irritably when he noticed it was cracked. He tried tapping it but the phone wouldn't respond to his touch.

Crying out loud in annoyance, Roxas had no other option other than to walk to Riku's house.

* * *

It was frustrating for Roxas to stroll to Riku's house with his nose bleeding. Especially when it took him thirty minutes... By the time he reached Riku's house, it was almost dark and Roxas was utterly exhausted. He wanted to go home and sleep forever. Today wasn't worth it. He should've just enjoyed his only day off lazing around in his apartment. It shouldn't have been his problem that Xion lost her driver license. Heck, she could've just gotten another one.

As he knocked the door, Roxas could only scowl bitterly at the memories of Hayner. He didn't know his friend grew up to be such a prude. As the front door opened, Roxas could feel his annoyance rising even higher. Riku always pissed him off but it probably had to do with the silver-haired disliking him for no absolute reason.

"Yes?" Riku asked blandly, face straight with no emotion and it reminded Roxas about Hayner's own hostile face. Roxas suppressed the urge to bash Riku's face against the door because that would've probably been rude.

"Tell Sora I'm ready to leave." Roxas stated sourly, before turning his back on Riku and heading to Sora's car, deciding to wait outside rather than attempt some ill conversation with Riku. It wasn't long before Sora rushed out with a silly grin and his usual wink. Roxas only stared back bitterly, not in the mood to humor his cousin. Sora must've sensed the mood because he wiped off his huge grin and frowned.

"What happened to your nose? Did something happened with Xion?" Sora questioned worriedly but Roxas didn't answer back, only waiting for Sora to unlock the car so he can slip inside and sleep. Sora took the hint and turned on the car, observing Roxas closely as he entered the passenger seat.

The rest of the car ride was silent.

* * *

**March 28- Day 43**

* * *

It was nearly the end of his shift. There was only thirty minutes to go before he was allowed to leave the fast-food restaurant and since it was nearly closing time, there were barely any customers ordering. Although, there were definitely plenty of customers in the booths, chowing down on their greasy hamburgers and salty french fries. Roxas didn't mind it though. He preferred staring at nothing rather than taking orders from some ill-mannered customers.

Since his meeting with Hayner, Roxas grew to be a bit irritated during work. A frown that was usually stuck in place during work days would developed into a scowl whenever he was taking orders. A few customers were uncomfortable by the dark look and would often complain to his boss. Ms. Allen had only stared at Roxas with concern before pinching his cheeks, telling him to brighten up. So, Roxas did, placing on the sweetest smile. But inside, Roxas felt bitter.

The love letters started coming back. Girly handwriting and sugary words were the same as before but all it did was make Roxas feel ill. His stomach would lurch and the urge to vomit was held back. The bright, vibrant flowers were there too but the only thing Roxas did was throw them straight in his trash bin. Roxas wasn't happy at all. Whenever a letter showed up, he would go hide under his covers because all it did was remind him of the night where he was threatened about Xion. It was sick. Heck, he felt sick.

However, despite all that, Roxas wanted to know. He _needed _to know who was behind this all. He didn't have much clues except for a few big ones like the hair color or eye color or the way he was suppose to be '_familiar'_. There was another hint but Roxas wasn't so sure about it. It was the day where Roxas first met Xion. Sora mentioned that someone was watching them intently. Roxas definitely needed to ask Sora about that.

So, the moment Sora entered the restaurant with his charming wink and smirk, Roxas left his post and grabbed Sora's arm. Roxas pulled him outside so that no one was able to overhear their conversation. Sora only responded with a surprised blink to which Roxas ignored.

"Sora, I need to ask you a favor." Roxas muttered lowly, staring at Sora with serious eyes. Sora frowned, curiously staring at Roxas before nodding slowly. "Remember the night when Xion and I first met?" At Sora's second nod, Roxas continued, his voice whispering. "Well, I need you to point out who was staring at us. If he's not in there today, tell me the next time you visit but I need you to tell me no matter what."

Sora looked reluctant, as his face twisted into some sort of grimace. However, Roxas squeezed his arm tighter, whispering coolly, "I need to know." After that, Sora didn't appear as hesitant but there was still a small frown on his face.

"He sits in the corner of the restaurant... Next to the other exit and I think he sits there everyday." Sora murmured, before taking a glance back into the restaurant. Then, he sharply glanced back at Roxas, swallowing. "Yeah, he's sitting there right now."

"Was he staring at us?" Roxas asked, resisting the urge to follow Sora's previous glance. Sora only shook his head in reply.

"No, I think he's reading a newspaper or some journal. I can't tell." Sora pursed his lips, looking reluctantly at Roxas. "Why do you need to know?" Roxas sighed a little, shaking his head.

"I'm planning to go ask him something." Roxas replied. "What does he look like?" Roxas was curious. If Sora told him bright red hair and green eyes, then Roxas would have to confront this guy. If not, Roxas would probably disregard him as some random creep.

"He looks like... he has a lot of red hair. I think he's really tall too but pretty skinny. He doesn't look weak though." Roxas immediately frowned, feeling troubled by the description. This meant Roxas would have to confront the guy and ask him if he was really the one that was causing all these profound problems in his life. Thinking about it made Roxas feel nervous..

"Oh okay." Roxas mumbled. Sora frowned at Roxas, mouth firmly pursed in worry. However, Roxas smiled weakly. "I'll be fine, Sora. Also, why don't you drive home right now? I'll take the train back home. No problem." Sora opened his mouth to argue but Roxas only shook his head and firmly stared at his cousin. "It's fine! Just go home, Sora. You look exhausted." Sora pursed his lips in concern before sighing, reluctantly agreeing.

Then, Roxas was walking Sora to his car, smiling as Sora revved up his car. Waving his goodbye slowly, Roxas watched as Sora left his sight. After that, Roxas entered the fast-food restaurant once again, hearing the chattering of all the kids. Roxas took a glance at the clock and noticed he only had five more minutes of his shift. However, a quick peek at the register revealed no customers. So, he decided to retire early and removed his apron. If there was more customers, one of the workers would be able to attend to it.

Taking a deep reassuring breath, Roxas turned to the table Sora had pointed out. Right away, Roxas pondered on why he never noticed the flaming red hair that literally screamed "**_NOTICE ME_**!" Maybe it had to do with the fact that Roxas was always day-dreaming during work. As he took a step forward, Roxas noticed that the guy was reading a newspaper which was kind of weird because nobody except old people seemed to do that sort of thing.

Roxas felt his heart beat faster as he walked closer, wondering if he should ditch. But didn't he want answers? Sure, he did but he was too nervous and panicky. It mostly had to do with the fact that there was a possibility that this was the guy that was assaulting him for about a month. However, he ignored the anxious flutters and continued on, placing on his placid front with his composed face.

Then, he took a seat across from the red-headed fellow. Roxas couldn't help but stiffen a bit when the guy froze and quickly flickered his light green eyes over to Roxas. The guy's face was blank at first before a small flicker of surprise appeared in his green eyes. In a small millisecond, the guy widened his eyes but then it was gone. The redhead's face became expressionless once again, except for that tiny shred of amusement in his green eyes. Roxas only furrowed his eyebrows together in anxiety, a small frown appearing on his face.

It was a silent for a moment, with Roxas observing the guy and the guy doing the same. Though, Roxas narrowed his eyes after a second as realization struck him. This was the _same _guy that bumped into him and spilled his soda all over him a month ago. Roxas recognized the emerald green eyes. However, the man wasn't dressed in the same suspicious hoodie from a month ago. Instead, he was dressed in a neat, expensive-looking suit. It looked awfully out of place in the middle of a cheap fast-food restaurant but Roxas paid it no attention.

"Hello," Roxas said cautiously, watching the man's piercing gaze. "I'm Roxas and I've been meaning to ask you this." The guy only blinked innocently but the all-knowing smile on the redhead's face urged Roxas to continue on. "Have you been writing letters to me?" Roxas only felt the small buzz of awkwardness when the man said nothing. However, he still gazed back as confidently as he could until the guy chuckled. After that, Roxas's brave act faltered and a small, nervous frown began to appear.

Then, the redheaded guy opened his mouth to reply back.

This was the moment where Roxas met Axel for the first time in his life. Well, at least from what he remembered.

* * *

Okay, I'm in a rush but I want to post this chapter right now so I'm gonna make this quick. I AM SO SORRY for updating a few months later. Schoolwork is a fucking bitch and you guys will probably have expect chapters coming 1-3 months later. Sorry if you guys aren't interested in this story anymore but I hope you guys continue to read. I'm so busy with life so the only time I'll probably update a lot is during summer break. There's a few things bothering me in this chapter but I'll deal with it later. I need to go now so I'll fix grammar mistakes later tonight.

By the way, I might have to change this to M-rated but I don't know. What do you guys think? It already has violence and cursing in it. It might develop to something bigger later on so yeah. Might change it later so expect to find this in the M-rated section.

BYE! I hope you guys review. Thanks for being patient! :)


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